BX5055    .M4  1883 
Mercier,  Anne. 
Our  mother  church 
being  simple  talk 


OUR   MOTHER  CHURCH 


Our  Mother  Church 


giimplt  STalfe  on  |)ts()  Copies 


MRS.   JEROME  MERCIER 


"  I  joy,  dear  Mother,  when  I  view 
Thy  perfect  lineaments  and  hue, 

Both  sweet  and  bright : 
Beauty  in  thee  takes  up  her  place. 
And  dates  her  letters  from  thy  face, 
When  she  doth  write." 


FOURTH  EIDITION" 


E.    P.    BUTTON    AND  CO^IPANY 

PUBLISHERS,  BOOKSELLEKS.  AXP  IMI'OKrEKS 
39,  WLST  TWENTV-TIURI)  STRKKT 


BEIN 


BY 


https://archive.org/details/ourmotherchurchbOOmerc 


TO  THE  MEMBERS  OF 

THE    ST.   ANNE'S  SOCIET 

FOR  YOUNG  CHRISTIAN  GIRLS 

erijiEi  ^DOti  is  SDcUicatcK 

mrn  a  prayer  for  gods  blessing 


PREFACE 


'J^HIS  book  is  written  for  Girls.  Those  to  whom  it  is 
dedicated  are  bound  together  in  a  simple  Society, 
which  seeks  to  direct  their  lives  by  fervent  love  to  the 
Church  in  which  God's  grace  has  planted  them,  and  to 
inspire  them  by  a  strong  yearning  to  bring  forth  fruit  to 
His  praise. 

The  object  of  the  book  is  to  set  forth  some  elementary 
knowledge  concerning  matters  of  the  deepest  interest  and 
of  vital  importance,  in  such  a  form  that  an  intelligent  girl 
may  find  pleasure  in  reading  it. 

My  earnest  request  to  every  such  reader  is,  that  she 
will  not  peruse  my  work  once  and  then  lay  it  aside ;  but 
that  she  will  help  me  in  my  effort  by  giving  some  time 
and  attention  to  the  subjects  here  set  forth ;  will,  if 
possible,  learn  the  few  tables  appended  to  the  chapters, 
and  read  the  books  of  which  I  add  a  list.  Then  my 
little  work,  simple  and  insufficient  as  it  is,  will  have  led 
her  on  to  higher  things,  which  may,  by  the  Divine  bless- 
ing, influence  all  her  life. 

For,  in  these  days,  it  behoves  us  all  to  take  our  place 
as  soldiers  of  our  King  firmly  and  boldly  under  a  banner 
whose  ensign  we  can  read.    There  must  be  no  hesitation 


viii  PREFACE. 

on  which  side  we  serve,  if  we  would  serve  Him  at  all; 
and  if  we  love  our  mother  the  Church,  and  are  grateful 
to  Him  who  made  us  her  children,  we  must  show  that 
gratitude  in  a  loyal,  intelligent  adherence.  So  may  our 
own  souls  prosper,  and  perhaps  those  of  others  be  added 
unto  us. 

The  pleasant  duty  now  remains  of  expressing  my 
gratitude  to  those  who  have  helped  me  in  my  work,  more 
especially  to  those  who  have  so  generously  given  their 
time  to  the  correction  of  some  of  my  mistakes.  Chapters 
I.  to  VH.  have  been  revised  by  the  Rev.  Jerome  J. 
Mercier;  Chapters  VHI.  to  XI.  by  M.  F.  B.  P.,  author 
of  the  Keys  to  Church  History  Ancient  and  Modern, 
edited  by  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Blunt ;  for  the  revision  of 
Chapters  Xlll.  and  XIV.  by  W.  White,  Esq.,  f.s.a.,  I 
must  express,  besides  gratitude,  surprise  at  the  industry 
which  could  find  time,  amidst  constant  occupations,  to  be- 
stow on  one  so  utterly  lacking  in  claims  on  his  kindness. 
For  Chapters  XII.  and  XV.  the  author  alone  is  re- 
sponsible, but  in  the  final  Chapter  due  acknowledgment 
must  be  made  to  Miss  G.  Grey  for  her  valuable  notes  on 
Church  Embroidery,  and  to  C.  E.  Mercier,  Esq.  for  his  on 
Illumination.  Also  to  those  dear  known  friends  who  have 
aided  me  with  advice  or  with  the  manual  labour  of  copy- 
ing, and  to  those  unknown  friends  whose  published  works 
have  helped  me  so  much  that  acknowledgment  became 
impossible,  I  would  here  tender  hearty  thanks. 
I  say  farewell  with  the  words  of  another  :* 
"God  bless  thee,  little  book,  and  anoint  thee  for  thy 
work,  and  make  thee  a  savour  of  good  to  many  !  We 
*  Sylvester  Judd. 


PREFACE. 


shall  meet  again  in  other  years  or  other  worlds.  May  we 
meet  for  good  and  not  for  evil  !  If  there  is  any  evil  in 
thy  heart  or  thy  ways,  God  purge  it  from  thee." 

ANNE  MERCIER. 


NOTE  TO  THE  SECOND  EDITION 

A  FEW  alterations  and  additions  have  been  made  in  this 
work,  the  more  important  being  such  as  to  fit  it,  by  a 
short  commentary  on  the  Catechism  and  Confirmation 
Service,  for  a  class-book  for  students  preparing  for  the 
junior  and  senior  Cambridge  Local  examinations. 

The  chapters  on  the  Prayer-Book  may  also  be  useful  to 
candidates  for  the  Sunday  School  Teachers'  Examination 
under  the  Church  of  England  Sunday  School  Institute, 
concerning  which  all  information  may  be  obtained  from 
C.  G.  Maylard,  34,  New  Bridge  Street,  Blackfriars.  E.  C 

A.  M. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

I.  Introductory  .... 

FACE 

II. 

The  Primitive  Church 

9 

III. 

Primitive  Places  and  Modes  of  Worship 

25 

IV. 

The  Early  English  Church  . 

V. 

The  Monastic  Orders  . 

60 

VI. 

The  Friars  .... 

84 

VII. 

A  Review  of  Church  History 

.  94 

VIII. 

The  Prayer-Book 

lOI 

IX. 

The  Prayer-Book — continued  . 

.  124 

X. 

The  Prayer-Book  : 
Holy  Communion  Office    .  . 

.  m 

XI. 

The  Prayer-Book  : 
Holy  Baptism,  &c.  . 

•  151 

XII. 

Symbolism  .... 

.  180 

XIII. 

Church  Architecture  . 

.  214 

XIV. 

Windows  and  Bells 

.  24s 

XV. 

Church  Music  .... 

.  258 

XVI. 

Church  Work  .... 

.  280 

CHAPTER  I. 


fntrobuctorji. 

"  IVhere  tin  sacred  Body  lieth 
Eagle  souls  'will  congregate, 
W)io  with  Saints  and  happy  Angels 

There  their  spirits  recreate; 
One  same  living  bread  sustaining 
Denizens  of  eitlier  state." 
St.  Peter  Damiani,  translated  by  Dr.  Neale. 

'T'HE  morning  sun  was  warm. '  Joan  Leslie  was  sitting 
in  the  shade  in  her  aunt's  garden  near  Barminster,  a 
square  of  soft  green  turf  surrounded  by  ivy-grown  walls 
and  shrubs,  under  which  borders  of  violets  and  primroses 
were  blooming.  Two  elms  bent  feathering  over  the  walls. 
Between  and  above  their  branches  rose  the  new  beautiful 
spire  of  St.  Salvador's.  The  windows  of  the  church 
being  open,  the  choristers'  voices  came  floating  over  in 
the  chant,  faintly  and  sweetly,  sounding  like  angels' 
voices  dropping  from  the  sky  ;  they  added  a  wonderful, 
delicious  peace  to  the  tranquil  scene.  Delicate  young 
leaves,  sunlight,  green  turf,  the  white  picturesque  building, 
rooks  cawing,  faint  fragmentary  music,  made  up  so  ex- 
quisite a  sweetness  that  it  was  almost  too  sweet  for  earth, 
and  brought  into  Joan's  heart  that  vague  yearning  which 
always,  when  we  see  great  beauty,  hints  to  us  of  the 
Beauty  of  Beauties,  which  is  Heaven.  Then  the  music 
stopped,  and  Joan  fell  to  her  thinking  again. 

B 


2 


INTRODUCTORY. 


Before  long  her  aunt,  Mrs.  Askell,  the  Dean's  widow, 

joined  her,  dressed  all  in  black  and  grey  with  her  usual 
refined  neatness,  her  Prayer-book  still  in  her  hand,  and 
some  other  books  too,  with  markers  in  them. 

"  Now,  Joan,"  she  said,  sitting  down  beside  her  niece, 
"shall  we  have  our  first  lesson  ?" 

"  Oh,  auntie  !  you  know  1  am  longing  for  it,"  answered 
the  girl. 

Joan  Leslie  (whose  parents  were  in  India)  had  been 
obliged  to  leave  her  boarding-school  in  London  on  ac- 
count of  ill-health,  and  had  come  to  Mrs.  Askell  to  rest 
and  get  strong.  Here,  in  a  very  short  time,  many  ideas, 
to  her  utterly  new,  had  revealed  themselves.  In  the 
district  in  which  her  school  was  situated,  the  churches 
had  been,  for  the  most  part,  opened  on  Sunday  only; 
or,  if  at  one  or  two  there  had  been  morning  prayers  on 
Wednesday  and  Friday,  she  had  never  attended  them, 
Joan  had  learned  her  Catechism,  and  knew  all  the  Bible 
histories  well  enough;  she  had  also  read  the  Life  of 
Luther,  and  knew  something  concerning  the  Reformation. 
She  was  a  good  girl  at  heart ;  there  was  some  life  in  her 
prayers,  but  her  religion  was  all  what  is  called  subjective; 
she  thought  that  it  behoved  men  and  women  mainly  and 
in  the  first  place  to  get  their  own  souls  saved;  that  this 
was  to  be  done  by  praying  ;  and  that  if  people  would  only 
pray  it  mattered  little  how  or  where  they  did  it.  Some- 
thing like  this  was  Joan's  creed.  There  had  been  a  few 
Dissenters  among  her  schoolfellows,  and  because  they 
were  devout  and  conscientious,  she  argued  that,  since 
some  Dissenters  were  good  people,  it  did  not  matter 
much  whether  persons  in  general  went  to  church  or 
chapel.  She  had  thought  it  rather  sacrilegious  to  observe 
Saints'  Days,  and  rather  presumptuous  to  receive  the 
Holy  Communion  oftciicr  than  once  a  month  at  most. 


3 


In  fact  she  knew  nothing  about  her  own  Church,  its 
history  or  principles,  and  in  tliis  was  like  nine-tenths  of 
all  English  school-girls. 

But  now  she  had  begun  to  feel  her  ignorance.  The 
mere  beauty  of  the  Church  constantly  before  her  eyes  (so 
different  from  the  base  classical  manner  of  those  she  had 
seen  before)  had  worked  its  way  into  her  heart  like  a 
poem,  making  her  feel  that  in  the  very  lines  of  its  building 
there  must  be  a  meaning  deeper  than  she  understood.  Her 
aunt's  devotion  had  had  the  same  effect :  its  freedom 
from  self-assertion,  its  manner  of  clinging  to  some  strong 
support  with  out  herself 

Now,  in  answer  to  her  questions,  Mrs.  Askell  had 
promised  to  teach  Joan  something  of  Church  history  :  of 
the  laws  by  which  the  Church  is  governed,  of  the  gems 
of  art  which  adorn  her. 

"You  will  not  mind  a  sort  of  little  catechism,"  said 
Mrs.  Askell,  smiling  pleasantly.  "Tell  me,  Joan,  how 
you  would  define  the  Chunk  ?  what  is  it?" 

Joan  thought  for  a  minute. 

"I  suppose,  in  the  first  place,  a  building,  and  in  the 
second,  an  assembly  of  people." 

"  Or  rather,  a  body  of  people ;  of  all  Christian,  or 
christened  believers.  You  are  right  in  your  two  divisions. 
The  Church  (derived,  as  a  word,  from  the  Greek  Kyiiakc, 
the  Lord's  House)  is  known  to  our  sight  as  a  sacred 
building  typifying  that  'spiritual  temple'  in  which  we  all, 
as  living  stones,  are  built  up,  according  to  the  words  of 
St.  Paul.  And  who,  shall  we  say,  are  these  living  stones  V 

"  All  baptized  believers,  you  said." 

"  Only  those  who  are  alive  now?"  " 

"  Those  who  have  died  believing  also,  I  suppose." 

"Yes;  and  therefore  the  Church  in  this  higher  sense 
has  also  two  divisions,  the  Visible  and  Invisible,  or 


4 


the  Church  Militant  {i.e.  fighting)  and  the  Church 
Triumphant ;  to  make  it  quite  clear,  the  body  of  believers 
still  warring  with  sin  on  earth,  and  the  body  of  believers 
from  the  beginning,  who  have  passed  beyond  our  ken 
into  the  peace  and  silence  of  Paradise.  These  are  the 
Triumphant  ones,  who  have  overcome,  and  to  whom  we 
trust  one  day  to  be  gathered.  I  have  spoken  of  the 
Church  as  a  Temple.  Who  founded  this  building.'" 
"  Christ  Himself,  I  suppose." 

"  In  one  sense,  indeed,  our  Lord  laid  the  first  stone, 
when  He  said  :  '  Thou  art  Peter,  and  upon  this  Rock  I 
will  build  my  Church.'  But  in  a  more  definite  sense 
He  prepared  and  taught  the  Apostles,  who  became  its 
founders  when  He  was  gone  from  them.  How  He  taught 
them  you  see  in  the  Gospels.  In  speaking  of  the  Church 
as  a  Temple,  we  must  not,  however,  lose  sight  of  the 
metaphor  so  often  used  in  Scripture,  by  which  the  Church 
is  spoken  of  as  His  Body,  the  Body  of  which  He  is  the 
Head.  This  is  made  clear  to  the  sense  in  the  very  archi- 
tecture of  many  churches  (take  our  St.  Salvador's,  for 
instance),  which  are  built  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  the 
symbol  always  representing  to  us  our  dear  Lord  Himself." 

"Aunt,"  said  Joan,  after  a  pause,  "  I  am  puzzled  about 
one  thing.  You  speak  of  the  Church ;  but  what  do  you 
mean  by  that " 

"  I  do  not  understand  your  difficulty,  my  child." 

"  You  do  not  mean  the  Church  of  England,  I  suppose." 

"  Why  not  ?  " 

"  Because  I  thought  the  Church  of  England  began  at 
the  Reformation." 

"Indeed;  did  you?  Then  you  thought  there  was  no 
Church  of  England  at  all  till  three  hundred  years  ago?" 

"  I  have  always  been  puzzled  by  that  since  I  read  an 
old  book  which  one  of  my  schoolfellows  liked  very  much. 


ONLY  ONE  CHURCH. 


5 


called  Father  Clement.  Father  Clement  is  a  Romish 
priest,  and  he  asks  a  young  English  lady  to  tell  him 
where  was  her  Church  before  the  Reformation." 

"  Did  the  young  lady  answer  him  ?  " 

"  I  think  not ;  or  if  she  did,  I  never  read  so  far." 

"  Then  we  will  try  to  remedy  the  defect.  You  say  in 
the  Creed  that  you  believe  in  One  Catholic  and  Apostolic 
Church.    What  do  you  mean  by  that  ?  " 

"  I  never  quite  knew." 

"  You  mean  (or  ought  to  mean)  that  you  believe  in  the 
One  only  Church,  founded  by  the  Apostles  (hence  Apos- 
tolic), and  spread  universally  (that  is,  catholic  or  general).* 
That  same  Gospel  preached  by  the  Apostles,  those  same 
Church  rules  formed  by  them  (which  in  all  essentials  are 
held  by  us  in  the  English  Church  now),  were  soon  spread 
as  far  as  our  island,  which  was  thenceforth  a  branch  of 
the  one  true  Catholic  Church.  Then  separations  came, 
and  we  have  now  three  great  branches,  Greek,  Roman, 
English  or  Anglican.  But  remember,  there  are  not  three 
Churches,  a  Greek,  a  Roman,  and  an  English,  though  we 
say  so  for  the  sake  of  distinction.  They  are  three  branches 
of  one  great  tree — a  tree  of  Life." 

"Then  are  we  of  the  same  Church  as  the  foreign 
Roman  Catholics?"  asked  Joan,  in  a  surprised  and 
slightly  injured  tone. 

"  Certainly,  since  there  is  but  one  Church.  Shall  we 
divide  Christ's  Body?" 

"  But  our  forms  of  worship  are  so  different  from  theirs." 

"  They  are  different,  but  the  differences  consist  chiefly 
in  errors  which  crept  into  the  Roman  branch,  and  which 
still  do  not  prevent  its  being  a  true  branch  of  the  Church ; 

*  The  term  Catholic,  as  used  in  old  times,  is  applicable  only  to  the  truth 
as  universally  received  by  the  Church;  hence  its  meaning  is  synonvroous 
with  ortlwdox. 


6 


INTRODUCTORY. 


and  partly  in  omissions  of  our  own  which  it  would  be 
well  to  remedy." 

"  Yet,  surely  there  were  Romanists  in  England  before 
the  Reformation." 

"It  would  be  truer  to  say  that  Roman  error  had  crept 
into  the  Anglican  Church,  and  was  then  cut  away.  But 
you  are  as  yet  hardly  qualified,  I  see,  to  chat  on  these 
subjects.  We  must  have  more  formal  talks  on  each  point, 
and  at  the  close  of  our  lessons,  I  have  no  doubt,  a  con- 
versation on  similar  topics  would  flow  verj-  differently 
between  us.  You  will  see  that  our  English  Church  goes 
straight  back  to  the  Apostles'  time ;  and  as  they  derived 
their  laws,  their  forms,  their  prayers,  in  many  instances, 
from  the  Jewish  Church,  so  we  pass  back  into  the  patri- 
archal days.  The  Patriarchs  and  all  the  Jewish  Church 
had  a  saving  faith  in  Christ  as  the  Messiah  who  was  to 
come,  and  thus  in  some  sense  were  of  the  one  great 
Catholic  Church  to  which  we  belong.  I  will  now  read 
you  a  passage  which  will  illustrate  the  Temple  metaphor 
to  you." 

Mrs.  Askell  chose  out  a  little  book  called  A  Companion 
to  the  Sunday  Services,  and  read  this  passage : 

" '  A  temple  there  has  been  upon  earth,  a  spiritual 
temple  made  up  of  living  stones,  a  temple  (as  I  may  say) 
composed  of  souls ;  a  temple  with  God  for  its  light  and 
Christ  for  the  high  priest,*  with  wings  of  Angels  for  its 
arches,  with  Saints  and  teachers  for  its  pillars,  and  with 
worshippers  for  its  pavement ;  such  a  temple  has  been 
on  earth  ever  since  the  Gospel  was  first  preached.  This 
unseen,  secret,  mysterious  temple  exists  everjTvhere 

*  It  is  to  be  observed  that  in  the  Apostolical  Constitution  the  term 
Priest,  or  High  Priest,  is  always  used  when  he  is  spoken  of  in  reference  to 
his  office  of  offering  the  Christian  Sacrifice  ;  whilst  the  Bishop,  Presbyters, 
and  Deacons  are  spoken  of,  at  the  same  time,  in  reference  to  their  orderiue 
and  attendance  at  the  sacred  service. — W.  W. 


THE  CHURCH  A  SOCIETY. 


7 


throughout  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  in  all  places,  as  per- 
fect in  one  place  as  if  it  were  not  in  another.' 

"The  book  then  tells  how  at  first  the  Christians  wor- 
shipped in  an  upper  room,  or  in  the  open  air,  by  the  sea 
or  river  (so  that  they  might  baptize  converts).  They  had 
no  precious  adornments  to  their  sanctuary,  yet  'The 
Lord  was  among  them,  as  in  the  holy  place  of  Sinai ; ' 
the  temple  was  invisible.  But  soon  the  Lord  revealed 
Himself  to  the  world  as  the  king  of  it,  until,  in  a  few 
generations,  the  earth  was  covered  with  His  shrines; 
mines  and  forests  and  human  skill  offered  Him  their  best 
gifts ;  the  invisible  temple  had  become  visible,  built  not 
only  of  jewels,  gold,  and  choice  wood,  but  of  living  men. 
Every  one  of  us  must  go  to  make  up  His  mystical  Body. 
'  Our  tongues  must  preach  Him  and  our  voices  sing  of 
Him ;  our  knees  adore  Him,  our  hands  supplicate  Him, 
our  hearts  bow  before  Him,  our  countenances  beam  of 
Him,  and  our  gait  herald  Him.  And  hence  arise  joint 
worship,  forms  of  prayer,  ceremonies  of  devotion,  the 
course  of  services,  orders  of  ministers,  holy  vestments, 
solemn  music,  and  other  things  of  a  like  nature;  all 
which  are,  as  it  were,  the  incoming  into  this  world  of  the 
invisible  kingdom  of  Christ.'" 

"  That  is  a  beautiful  passage,"  said  Joan. 

"What  I  have  wished  to  convince  you  of  by  this  be- 
ginning," said  her  aunt,  "is  the  immense  antiquity  of  the 
Church  ;  the  society  to  which  (to  use  a  third  metaphor) 
you  belong.  You  entered  this  society  at  baptism,  and 
you  are  bound  to  learn  and  observe  its  laws.  What 
should  we  think  of  persons  joining  any  worldly  society, 
and  failing  to  make  themselves  acquainted  with  its  niles, 
and  thus  breaking  them  ignorantly  at  every  moment  ?" 

"  We  should  think  them  very  foolish  people." 

"  And  yet,  in  the  chief  of  all  societies,  the  Church,  this 


8 


INTRODUCTOR  Y. 


is  continually  done.  We  will  try  to  mend  the  matter 
with  regard  to  you." 

"Aunt,  although  I  do  not  know  much  of  Church 
history,  I  love  the  Church  very  much." 

"  I  am  truly  glad  to  hear  it ;  that  is  a  good  beginning. 
Now,  in  the  spirit  of  love,  we  will  go  on  to  our  first 
lesson." 


CHAPTER  II. 


"  The  old  builders  of  the  Church  built  upon  their  knees." 

"  T  MUST  now,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "give  you  some  facts 
in  order  of  time,  which  your  own  reading  will  help 
you  to  fill  up  with  detail.  What  I  propose  to  do  is  merely 
to  give  you,  as  it  were,  a  ground-plan  of  each  branch  of 
ecclesiastical  study,  and  to  allow  you  besides  a  few  peeps 
into  that  rich  cabinet  which  only  the  key  of  industry  can 
fully  unlock.  By  showing  you  there  a  few  gems,  a  little 
broidered  work  from  the  treasures  of  Church  literature, 
I  want  to  tempt  you  to  gather  and  see  for  yourself. 

"  The  passage  which  I  have  read  to  you,"  she  continued, 
"  states  that  there  has  been  upon  earth  the  holy  temple, 
which  is  the  Church  of  Christ,  ever  since  the  Gospel  was 
first  preached.  Now,  this  must  be  taken  with  a  limitation. 
For  though  the  Lord  was  the  Church's  founder  in  the 
widest  sense,  He  left  the  visible  work  of  foundation  until 
'the  Comforter'  should  come.  It  is  from  the  day  of 
Pentecost,  our  Whitsunday,  that  we  must  date  the  birth- 
day of  the  Church,  when  the  Holy  Ghost  descended  on 
the  Apostles  as  they  sat  in  the  'upper  room,'  probably 
their  place  of  worship  (Acts  ii.  1-4),  and  the  first  Christian 
sermon  was  preached.  (Acts  ii.  14-40.)  Three  thousand 
persons  were  converted  by  that  great  outpouring,  and  the 
Church  militant  had  taken  her  stand  upon  the  earth." 


THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


"  The  Church  militant  ?"  said  Joan.  "  I  have  forgotten 
what  that  means." 

"The  Church  doing  battle,  that  is,  with  the  Prince  of 
this  world.  Her  work  of  this  kind  soon  began.  Probably 
not  three  years  had  yet  passed  since  our  Lord's  death  and 
resurrection,*  and  the  infant  Church  had  hardly  had  time, 
one  would  think,  to  strengthen  her  constancy  to  the  point 
of  martyrdom,  when  the  persecution  broke  out  at  Jeru- 
salem in  which  Stephen  was  slain,  and  the  disciples,  with 
their  precious  burden  of  the  Gospel,  the  Good  News  (you 
know  that  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  Gospel),  were  scat- 
tered abroad  to  preach  throughout  Judeea.  (Acts  viii.  i.) 
Thus  'to  the  Jews  first'  the  glad  tidings  came.  And 
thus  Christ's  followers  at  once  fulfilled  His  command ;  to 
those  who  smote  on  the  right  cheek  they  turned  the  other 
also ;  on  those  who  took  the  coat  they  bestowed  the 
'mantle'  that  remained.  (St.  Matt.  v.  39,  40.)  It  was  the 
persecuting  Jews  to  whom  the  disciples  first  preached 
Christ. 

"But  the  twelve  Apostles  did  not  leave  Jerusalem, 
There  is  an  old  tradition  in  the  Church  {i.e.  a  statement 
handed  down;  from  trado,  Lat.  to  hand  down)  that  our 
Lord  after  His  resurrection,  while  yet  on  earth,  gave  some 
directions  to  His  servants  for  the  guidance  of  His  future 
Church,  and  that  He  then  ordered  them  to  remain  where 
they  were  until  a  space  of  twelve  years  should  have  con- 
solidated their  faith,  their  wisdom,  and  the  laws  for  the 
rule  of  His  kingdom  on  earth.  Certain  it  is  that  they 
did  remain,  and  before  they  separated  they  are  said  to 
have  drawn  up  the  Creed  hence  called  the  'Apostles' 
Creed,'  to  solidify  the  Christian  belief.  Though  this  fact 
is  doubted,  the  Creed  certainly  embodies  the  Apostles' 
doctrine.    Tradition  also  states  that  the  Saviour,  when 

*  Greswell  and  Alfcrd,  however,  date  St.  Stephen's  num)Tdoin  a.d.  37. 


ST.  JAMES  THE  LESS.  li 

He  appeared  to  James  alone  (i  Cor.  xv.  7),  named  him 
the  first  Christian  Bishop.  Such  he  certainly  became, 
being  elected  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  and  presiding  over 
the  councils  of  the  Apostles."  (Acts  xv.  1 3.) 

"Was  he  the  St.  James  who  was  killed  by  Herod?" 

"  No ;  you  will  find  the  account  of  that  slaughter  in 
Acts  xii.  2,  six  years  before  the  council  of  which  we  have 
just  read  in  the  fifteenth  chapter.  These  two  Apostles 
must  not  be  confounded  with  one  another.  The  St. 
James  who  was  beheaded  by  Herod  was  named  the 
Great,  either  because  he  was  much  older  than  the  other 
St.  James,  or  because  he  was  one  of  the  three  whom 
Christ  admitted  to  certain  intimate  transactions  of  His 
life  :  the  raising  of  Jairus's  daughter,  the  Transfiguration, 
and  the  Agony  in  the  Garden.  (St.  Luke  viii.  51  ;  St. 
Luke  ix.  28  ;  St.  Mark  xiv.  33.)  He  was  the  brother  of 
St.  John,  the  son  of  Mary  Salome,  and  perhaps  cousin 
of  our  Lord.  St.  James  the  Less,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem, 
called  the  Lord's  Brother  (Gal.  i.  19),  was  probably  son  of 
Joseph  by  a  former  wife.  He  was  afterwards  surnamed 
Justus,  the  Just,  from  his  singular  virtue.  He  led  a  life 
of  abstinence ;  his  knees  were  hard  with  prayer ;  his 
Church  rule  was  wise,  and  even  his  enemies  honoured 
him.  He  was  slain  in  his  ninety-sixth  year,  twenty-four 
years  after  Christ's  ascension.  The  Jews  seem  to  have 
been  deceived  concerning  his  belief— probably  from  the 
great  secresy  in  which  the  Christians  were  obliged  to 
worship — and  they  appealed  to  him  to  'restrain  the 
people  who  are  led  away  after  Jesus  as  if  he  were  the 
Christ.'  They  set  him  on  a  high  place  outside  the 
temple,  and  bade  him  hence  address  all  those  who  had 
gathered  for  the  passover.  But  his  great  age  had  not 
enfeebled  the  mind  or  courage  of  the  Apostle ;  he  replied  : 
'Why  do  ye  ask  me  respecting  Jesus,  the  Son  of  Man? 


12 


THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


He  is  now  sitting  in  the  Heavens,  on  the  right  hand 
of  Great  Power,  and  is  about  to  come  on  the  clouds 
of  Heaven.'  Then  the  Christians  in  the  crowd  were 
encouraged,  and  cried,  '  Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David  !' 
but  the  priests  and  Pharisees  cast  down  the  old  Apostle 
to  the  ground.  Here  he  dragged  himself  up  upon  his 
knees  and  prayed  for  those  who  were  ill-treating  him. 
The  people  began  to  stone  him.  A  Rechabite  who  stood 
by  exclaimed  :  'What  are  you  doing?  Justus  is  praying 
for  you.'  But  their  fury  was  untameable,  and  at  last  a 
fuller  beat  out  the  Saint's  brains  with  his  club.  His 
birthday  (as  those  days  are  called  on  which  holy  men 
entered  by  martyrdom  into  new  life)  is  celebrated  on 
May  1st  with  that  of  St.  Philip. 

"To  return  to  the  order  of  time.  The  Church  grew 
rapidly  ;  about  5,000  were  added  after  the  healing  of  the 
lame  man  at  the  Beautiful  Gate  (Acts  iv.  4),  and  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles  opened  a  door  to 
a  multitude  from  all  parts  of  the  earth.  (Acts  xi.)  At  the 
close  of  the  appointed  twelve  years  the  Apostles  dispersed 
to  preach  in  diverse  lands,  as  the  table  from  Blunfs 
Household  Theology  will  show.* 

"  Presently  came  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  the 
armies  of  the  Roman  Emperor  Vespasian,  in  A.D.  70.  The 
day  of  the  Lord  had  come,  the  great  and  fearful  day  to 
which  so  many  prophecies  had  pointed.  Nothing  more 
awful  than  the  accounts  of  the  siege  can  be  conceived. 
Not  a  mouthful  of  food  remained  in  most  of  the  houses  ; 
one  poor  woman  roasted  and  ate  her  own  child.  Signs 
appeared :  a  star  shaped  like  a  sword  in  heaven  ;  on 
earth,  the  vast  brazen  Temple  gate,  which  twenty  men 
could  hardly  move,  opened  of  itself,  as  though  to  testify 
that  the  house  of  God  was  no  longer  exclusively  for  the 

*  See  end  of  Chapter  ii. 


JERUSALEM  DESTROYED. 


13 


Jew.  Moreover,  in  the  Temple  itself  an  awful  voice  was 
heard  to  cry  in  the  night-time  :  '  Let  us  go  hence.'  This 
the  Jews  believed  to  be  what  they  called  the  Bath-kol,  or 
daughter  of  a  voice  ;  that  is,  the  Divine  utterance  which 
used  to  answer  the  priests  when  they  went  to  enquire  of 
God.  There  were  to  be  no  more  such  utterances,  no 
more  Jewish  ceremonies ;  the  old  covenant  had  broadened 
out  into  the  new,  as  a  narrow  stream  broadens  and  loses 
itself  in  the  wide  majestic  sea.  The  saying  was  fulfilled 
at  last,  which  had  been  spoken  nearly  800  years  before  : 
'  Now  also  many  nations  are  gathered  against  thee  that 
say.  Let  her  be  defiled,  and  let  our  eye  look  upon  Zion. 
But  they  know  not  the  thoughts  of  the  Lord,  neither 
understand  they  his  counsel :  for  he  shall  gather  them  as 
the  sheaves  into  the  floor.'  (Micah  iv.  ii,  12.)  So  rapidly 
did  God  gather  in  His  sheaves  that  in  eighty  years  more 
we  learn  from  Justin  Martyr  that  'there  is  no  race  of 
men,  whether  barbarian  or  Greek,  or  by  whatever  other 
name  they  be  designated,  whether  they  wander  in  waggons 
or  dwell  in  tents,  amongst  whom  prayers  and  thanks- 
givings are  not  offered  to  the  Father  and  Creator  of  all, 
in  the  name  of  the  crucified  Jesus.' 

"Strangely  enough,  the  very  enemies  against  whom 
Christianity  had  to  contend  seem,  in  God's  counsels, 
to  have  unconsciously  helped  to  propagate  it.  These 
enemies  were  threefold :  first  and  foremost,  the  Jews  ; 
secondly,  the  heathen  ;  thirdly,  heretics.  Against  the 
Jews  the  Christians  used  the  Old  Testament  as  their 
weapon,  fighting  them  with  the  prophecies  and  types  of 
their  own  nation.  When  the  destruction  of  the  Temple 
put  an  end  to  their  ceremonies,  the  Jews  became  men 
without  a  religion,  but  no  less  hardened  and  fierce. 
Observe  here,  that  Titus,  Vespasian's  son,  who  led  the 
Roman  army,  tried  hard  to  save  the  Temple,  but  it  was 


'4 


THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


burnt  against  his  commands  by  a  chance  brand.  God 
would  have  it  so.    The  fulness  of  time  was  come. 

"The  heathen  were  the  wealthiest  of  the  Church's 
foes  ;  their  worship  was  splendid  and  attractive.  We 
are  told  *  of  an  Egyptian  temple  : — '  There  are  cloisters 
and  vestibles,  and  groves  and  glades  ;  the  courts  are 
adorned  with  pillars  of  all  sorts ;  the  walls  glitter  with 
foreign  stones  ;  not  one  curious  picture  is  lacking ;  the 
srinctuaries  glitter  with  gold,  silver,  and  amber,  and 
scintillate  with  various  pebbles  from  India  and  /^^thiopia. 
rhe  shrines  are  shrouded  with  veils  wrought  in  gold.' 
There  were  countless  reasons  why  the  heathen  should 
hate  the  Christians,  though  some,  the  Romans  especially, 
were  generally  so  tolerant  of  foreign  creeds,  and  it  was 
once  even  proposed  in  Rome  to  build  a  temple  to  Christ. 
But  Christianity  would  have  ruined  many  of  their  pro- 
fessions :  first,  that  of  the  priests  ;  then  of  lawyers  and 
soldiers,  by  encouraging  peace  ;  of  tavern-keepers,  gladi- 
ators, dancers,  and  builders  of  the  temples.  So  that  all 
these  were  against  the  Christians.  1  see  you  have  some- 
thing to  say,  Joan  ;  what  is  it  ?" 

"  I  was  thinking,"  said  Joan,  "  that  Christianity  allows 
most  of  these  professions  now." 

"  Christianity  has,  in  spreading,  lost  too  much  of  its 
first  vigour.    All  men  are  now  called  Christians.  Then, 
only  those  were  called  so  who  had  strength  to  bear  hot 
and  lasting  persecution.    The  Church  was  sore  beset : 
"  'Fighting  and  feai-s,  within,  without :' 

but  the  trial  purified  her.  For  this  reason  we  look  back 
to  the  Church  of  the  first  three  centuries  as  to  a  model 
of  tried  and  perfect  faith.  The  first  two  enemies  of  the 
Church  in  some  degree  neutralized  each  other.  The 

*  By  Clement,  Bishop  of  Alexandria- 


ST.  POLYCARP. 


Jews,  spread  far  and  wide,  might,  humanly  speaking, 
have  destroyed  the  Church  but  for  the  power  of  the 
Romans,  whose  interest  it  was  to  keep  the  Jews  in  sub- 
jection. Moreover,  the  marvellous  organization  of  the 
Roman  Empire  helped  the  spread  of  Christianity.  But 
for  the  mode  of  travel  which  the  Romans  had  made  so  easy, 
there  could  not  have  been  so  large  a  concourse  at  that 
first  Pentecostal  preaching  ;  people  who  carried  the  word 
into  all  lands.  The  Roman  posts  bore  the  Christian 
epistles,  and  their  very  persecutions  were  a  hard  but 
precious  schooling,  for  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  has 
ever  been  '  the  seed  of  the  Church.'  You  look  enquiring, 
but  is  it  not  so?  Let  me  draw  you  one  or  two  pictures 
of  those  times,  and  say  if  you  would  not  have  gone  forth 
and  joined  the  Christians. 

"  Polycarp,  Bishop  of  Smyrna — in  all  probability  that 
'  Angel  of  the  Church  of  Smyrna '  to  whom  it  was  said, 
*  Be  thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give  thee  a  crown 
of  life' — earned  well  this  crown  of  glory.  He  was  a  pupil 
of  St.  John,  and  had  learned  from  that  master  to  love 
and  to  endure.  During  the  time  of  Marcus  Aurelius,  when 
nearly  a  hundred  years  old,  he  was  sought  out  for  perse- 
cution in  a  village  near  Smyrna,  whither  he  had  retired. 
Hearing  that  the  messengers  were  at  the  door,  he  prdered 
refreshments  to  be  provided  for  them,  and  begged  leave 
to  retire  for  prayer.  (This  has  always  seemed  to  me  one 
of  the  finest  instances  of  Christian  courtesy.)  He  then 
quietly  gave  himself  into  their  hands,  and  was  led  away. 
The  magistrate  met  him,  and  took  Polycarp  into  his 
chariot,  where  he  tried  to  dissuade  him  from  persisting 
in  the  faith.  Angry  at  his  refusal,  he  pushed  the  aged 
Bishop  from  the  chariot  again,  with  such  roughness  that 
he  fell  and  injured  himself  severely.  When  the  band 
arrived  before  the  tribunal,  the  pro-consul  also  tried  hard 


THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


to  persuade  Polycarp  to  'swear  by  the  genius  of  Caesar' 
— the  form  of  recantation  demanded  of  the  Christians. 
Again  in  vain.  '  Eighty  and  six  years  have  I  served 
Jesus,'  said  Polycarp,  '  nor  hath  He  ever  done  me  wrong. 
Why,  then,  should  I  denounce  my  King  and  Saviour?' 

"  He  defied  the  threat  of  the  wild  beasts.  It  was  now 
so  much  the  custom  to  make  a  spectacle  for  the  people 
by  exposing  Christians  to  the  beasts,  that  a  common  cry 
at  the  games — the  people  demanding  a  supreme  amuse- 
ment— was,  ^Christianas  ad  hones!'  'The  Christians  to 
the  lions.' 

"  At  last  Polycarp  was  condemned  to  the  flames,  and 
the  people  eagerly  raised  the  pile.  But  the  wind  blew 
off  the  flames,  while  the  holy  Bishop  bravely  sang  his 
Easter  Hymn.  (It  was  then  Easter  Eve,  April  25,  A.D. 
166.)  At  last  he  was  despatched  by  the  sword,  and  went 
to  receive  his  crown  of  life. 

"St.  Ignatius,  Bishop  of  Antioch,  another  disciple  of 
St.  John,  and  said  to  be  the  child  whom  our  Lord  placed 
in  the  midst  of  the  disciples  (St.  Mark  ix.  36),  was  given 
to  the  lions  about  A.D.  115. 

"  Of  these  Saints  you  will  find  a  vivid  account  in  The 
Pupils  of  St.  John  the  Divine,  by  Miss  Yonge. 

"  In  Mrs.  Jameson's  Sacred  and  Legendary  Art  you 
must  also  read  the  beautiful  histories  of  St.  Justina  and 
St.  Dorothea  ;  but  I  will  now  give  you  one  or  two  more 
strikingly  authentic. 

"There  was  one  Origen,  a  Father  of  the  Church — 
convicted,  indeed,  of  some  doctrinal  errors,  but  still  a 
noble  Christian — so  earnest,  that  in  his  boyhood  his 
mother  had  to  restrain  him  by  force  from  rushing  to 
denounce  himself  as  a  Christian,  that  he  might  suffer 
martyrdom.  This  seeking  for  death  was  not  allowed  in 
the  Church ;  the  proper  attitude  was  a  patient  readiness 


BLANDINA. 


'7 


to  live  or  die,  as  God  should  will ;  and  the  wisdom  of 
this  was  proved  by  the  failure  at  last  of  some  who  had 
most  eagerly  sought  martyrdom.  For  Origen  it  was 
not  decreed.  He  died  in  peace.  But  many  of  his 
disciples  suffered ;  among  them  a  certain  fair  maid 
named  Potamioena,  who  was  burned  with  her  mother. 
She  was  led  to  death  by  an  officer  named  Basilides,  who 
was  touched  by  her  sad  case,  and  protected  her  from  the 
insults  of  the  throng.  The  poor  girl  thanked  him  for  his 
pity,  and  prophesied  that  the  Lord  would  soon  reward 
him  for  it.  Her  torments  were  fearful ;  boiling  pitch  was 
poured  slowly  over  her  body  from  the  feet  upwards  :  but 
her  faith  never  failed  or  faltered. 

"Not  long  after,  Basilides  was  required,  on  some 
official  occasion,  to  take  an  oath,  which  he  refused  to 
do,  giving  as  his  reason  that  he  was  a  Christian.  His 
companions  thought  he  was  in  jest ;  but  he  assured  them 
of  his  earnestness,  adding  that  for  three  nights  after  her 
death  the  sweet  young  martyr  had  appeared  to  him  in  a 
dream,  placing  a  crown  upon  his  head,  and  saying  that 
she  had  entreated  the  Lord  for  him,  and  that  ere  long  he 
would  be  also  taken  to  be  with  her  where  she  was.  He 
was  baptized,  and  soon  after  beheaded. 

"Or  take  the  story  of  another  woman ;  no  great  lady 
this  time,  no  lovely  and  engaging  girl,  but  a  poor  deformed 
servant,  named  Blandina.  Her  personal  vigour  was  so 
great  that  her  tormentors  relieved  one  another  from  morn- 
ing to  night,  and  yet  she  lived  to  suffer  new  agonies, 
although  her  whole  body  was  torn  and  pierced.  Release 
was  promised  if  she  would  confirm  the  calumnies  told 
of  her  Church,  but  she  kept  firmly  repeating,  '  1  am  a 
Christian  ;  no  wickedness  is  carried  on  by  us.'  In  her 
torments,  it  was  rest  to  her  to  make  this  assertion. 

"  She  was  suspended  on  a  stake,  and  exposed  to  wild 


i8  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


beasts,  but  the  animals  would  not  touch  her,  and  other 
Christians  suffering  also  were  encouraged  by  her  ;  for 
through  her  poor  weak  form  hanging  there,  they  saw  the 
Lord  her  master  who  had  so  endured  pain  for  them.  A 
youth  of  fifteen,  named  Pontinus,  a  fellow-prisoner,  was 
cheered  and  fortified  by  her  words  and  example.  Finally, 
after  being  scourged  and  half  roasted,  she  was  cast  into  a 
net  and  tossed  by  a  bull ;  but  even  then  her  persecutors 
had  to  slay  her  with  the  sword.  It  is  said  that  beasts 
and  even  fire  often  refused  to  harm  the  Christians  in 
these  early  days,  as  if  God  would  set  to  His  seal  that 
only  man,  to  whom  He  had  granted  free  will,  was  per- 
mitted to  do  such  evil  and  cruel  deeds. 

"  Do  not  these  things  fire  even  the  poor  cold  faith  of 
us  who  live  in  these  easy  days,  when  it  is  considered 
respectable  to  be  a  Christian,  and  too  many  of  us  hold 
back — not  our  lives,  for  we  are  not  asked  for  them,  but — 
our  miserable  gold  and  silver  from  Christ's  service  !  The 
faith  of  the  early  Christians  was  brightly  kindled  by  the 
sight  of  such  endurance.  So  that  it  was  not  really  the 
foes  without  that  the  Church  had  to  fear  so  much  as  the 
guilt  of  her  own  children,  who  would  fain  have  '  rent  the 
seamless  coat  of  Christ.'  Heretics  (that  is,  '  pickers  and 
choosers,'  from  haireo,  Greek,  to  choose  by  preference ; 
thus,  the  people  who  must  needs  choose  tlieir  own  belief) 
had  existed  almost  from  the  earliest  times.  St.  John 
wrote  his  gospel  in  the  year  78,  in  order  to  refute  certain 
false  doctrines  which  had  already  sprung  up.  There  is 
no  space  in  our  simple  lessons  to  recount  these  heresies  ; 
you  will  read  of  them  in  any  Church  history.  The  most 
widely  spread  was  that  of  Arius,  who  denied  that  God  the 
Son  is  equal  to  God  the  Father.  The  Church  boldly  met 
these  worst  enemies  ;  councils  were  called,  the  doctrines 
condemned,  and  their  propagators  excommunicated." 


COUNCILS. 


19 


"I  thought  excommunication  was  a  popish  custom," 
said  Joan,  simply. 

"  It  is  a  primitive  custom.  Indeed,  what  other  custom 
can  there  be  in  such  cases?  What  can  the  Church  do 
other  than  to  declare  that  persons  who  deny  her  most 
living  and  necessary  truths  are  outside  of  her  communion, 
have  nothing  in  common  with  her  ?  True,  a  Bishop  would 
be  sorely  beset  who  should  excommunicate  any  one  in 
these  days ;  we  know  it  is  so,  for  we  have  seen  it ;  but 
no  honest  Bishop  should  falter  even  in  these  our  cold 
times  to  do  it  if  needful,  and  that  he  should  suffer 
contempt  for  his  deed  is  an  honour  and  a  grace  to  him. 
Few  of  us  are  now  found  worthy  to  endure  hardships  for 
Christ. 

"  Here  is  the  table  of  the  Apostles'  various  missions, 
which  I  promised ;  here  are  also  other  tables  of  the  per- 
secutions which  the  Christians  suffered,  and  of  the  six 
great  Councils  against  heresy.*  The  first  four  of  these 
are  recognized  by  the  English  Church,  and  the  last  two 
are  also  generally  reckoned  with  them,  as  having  uttered 
wise  decrees  led  by  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  relying  on  His 
promise  :  '  Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end.' 
(St.  Matt,  xxviii.  20.)  This  promise  is  justly  held  to  have 
been  made  to  the  Church  at  large,  Christ's  body  and 
representative  on  earth,  and,  therefore,  where  the  whole 
Church  is  gathered  in  His  name,  the  fulfilment  of  it  is 
confidently  claimed.  These  six  Councils  are  called  CEcit- 
menical  or  General  Councils  (from  oikoumene,  Greek, 
the  whole  habitable  globe),  and  represented,  as  a  rule, 
the  whole  Church.  It  is  not  possible  to  have  such  Coun- 
cils now,  so  widely  have  the  diverse  branches  of  the  one 
Church  grown  and  split  asunder.  The  effort  made  by 
the  Pope  to  summon  such  a  Council  in  1869  was  futile, 

*  See  pp.  22-24. 


20 


as  only  the  Roman  branch  of  the  Church  was  properly 
represented  there. 

"  Now,  at  last,  I  naay  tell  you  of  the  end  of  Christian 
persecutions,  and  of  the  entrance  of  the  Church,  like  a 
gracious  and  well-adorned  lady,  into  the  palace  of  mon- 
archs.  Henceforth,  kings  were  to  be  her  nursing  fathers, 
and  queens  her  nursing  mothers.  It  was  the  great  Emperor 
Constantine  who  wrought  the  change, and  we  may  be  proud 
to  remember  that  he  was  probably  born  at  York,  while 
his  father,  Constantius,  was  governing  the  Roman  forces 
in  Britain.  His  mother  you  will  hear  of  as  St.  Helena. 
Constantine,  a  thoughtful  and  wise  man,  felt  the  need  of 
a  living  belief,  which  Rome  had  long  ceased  to  feel  in 
her  many  deities  ;  and  he  seems  to  have  been  seeking 
for  the  Truth  when  something  like  a  miracle  appeared  to 
determine  him.  In  the  year  312  he  was  on  his  march  to 
battle.  The  sun — Constantine's  chosen  god,  Apollo — was 
sinking  out  of  sight.  The  Emperor  was  in  prayer  before 
that  golden  curtain  of  the  clouds — how  far  more  gorgeous 
than  the  veil  that  had  been  rent  in  twain  !  To  whom  did 
he  pray  ?  Ah  !  that  we  can  never  know ;  but  surely  if 
the  yearning  words  went  up  to  the  false  god,  the  Truth 
Himself  deigned  to  hear  and  answer  them.  For,  suddenly, 
surpassing  all  that  brightness,  shone  forth  a  marvellous 
symbol  in  the  sky,  and  the  words :  '  By  this  conquer.' 
It  is  further  said  that  in  a  dream  that  night  the  Saviour 
appeared  to  Constantine,  bearing  the  symbol  in  His  hand, 
and  commanding  that  it  should  be  to  the  Roman  legions 
a  standard  and  pledge  of  victory.  On  the  morrow  the 
Emperor  summoned  his  most  cunning  workmen  in  gold 
and  gems,  and  bade  them  copy  the  holy  sign  as  he  de- 
scribed it.  You  have  probably  seen  it,  not  knowing  what 
it  is.  It  resembles  our  English  letters  X  P,  and  is  some- 
times ignorantly  so  called ;  but  those  letters  stand  in 


LABARUM. 


21 


Greek  for  Ch  and  R,  the  first  letters  of  Christ's  name, 
and  the  proper  designation  of  the  symbol  is  the  Labarum, 
or  the  Standard. 

"As  you  may  imagine,  the  Emperor's  favour,  hence- 
forth bestowed  on  the  Christians,  made  a  vast  difference 
in  their  condition.  In  some  points,  a  sad  difference  ;  for 
the  Church,  freed  from  peril,  lost  her  first  purity.  Yet  her 
virtue  spreading  far  and  wide,  and  enriching  all  lands, 
we  must  feel  that  God's  good  time  had  come,  and  that  in 
giving  freely  the  Church  earned  her  best  treasure,  that 
of  love  widely  outpoured,  like  her  Master's  love." 

So  the  little  morning  study  ended,  and  Joan  looked 
round  on  her  shaded  garden  with  some  new  deep  thoughts 
to  enrich  her. 


THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


SUPPOSED  FIELDS  OF 

APOSTOLIC  LABOUR.* 

Name  of  Churches. 

By  whom  Founded. 

Palestine  and  Syria 

All  the  Apostles. 

Mesopotamia    (Turkey  in 

Asia)  .... 

St.  Peter  and  St.  Jude. 

Persia  .... 

St.    Bartholomew  and  St. 

Jude. 

India  .... 

St.    Bartholomew  and  St. 

Thomas 

1  lu'ace  (lurkey  in  Europe) 

St.  Andrew, 

[The  flourishing  Church  of  Con- 

stanunople  afterwards  sprang  up 

Scythia  (Russia) 

St.  Andrew. 

North  Africa  (Egypt  and  ) 

St.  Simon  Zelotes. 

Algeria)  .       .       .  ) 

St.  Mark. 

[Specially  connecieci  with  Alex- 

Ethiopia  (Central  Africa) 

St.  Matthew. 

Arabia  .... 

St.  I'aul. 

Asia  Minor  (Turkey  in  Asia) 

St.  Paul  and  St.  John. 

Macedonia       (Turkey  in 

Europe)  .... 

St  Paul 

Greece  .... 

St.  Paul. 

Italy  .... 

St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul. 

St.  Paul. 

Gaul  (France) 

St.  Paul. 

*  From  Blunt's  Household  Theology. 


FABLE  OF  PERSECUTIONS,  ETC.  23 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE  OF  PERSECUTIONS 
AND  INTERVALS  OF  REST.* 


A.D. 

64-  68 

Persecution  under  Nero.     Martyrdom  of  St. 

Peter  and  St.  Paul. 

oa-  95 

Time  of  peace. 

9S~  96 

Persecution  under  Doinitian.   Bai\ishment  of  St. 

John. 

9  104 

Time  of  peace. 

104-117 

Persecution  under  Trajan.     Martyrdom  of  St. 

Ignatius. 

117-161 

Time  of  peace.  Apologies  of  Aristides,  Quadra- 

tus,  and  Justin  Martyr. 

161 -180 

Persecution  under  Marcus  Aurelius.  Martyrdom 

of  St.  Polycarp  and  the  martyrs  of  Lyons. 

180-200 

Time  of  peace. 

200-21 1 

Persecution  under  Severus.    Martyrdom  of  St. 

Perpetua  and  others  in  Africa. 

211-250 

Time  of  peace,  excepting 

235-237,  Partial  persecution  under  Maximinus. 

250-253 

Persecution  under  Decius.    Martyrdom  of  SL 

Fabian. 

253-257 

Time  of  peace.    Disputes  concerning  the  lapsed. 

257-260 

Persecution  under  Valerian.    Martyrdom  of  St. 

Cyprian. 

260-303 

Time  of  peace,  excepting 

262,  Persecution  in  the  East  under  Macrianus. 

275,  Persecution  threatened  by  Aurelian. 

303-313 

Persecution   under   Diocletian,    Galerius,  and 

Maximinus.    Martyrdom  of  St.  Alban. 

From  A  Key  to  Church  History,  quoted  from  Dr.  Steere. 


24  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 


TABLE  OF  COUNCILS.* 


Where  Held. 

Date 

Emperor 

Object 

I. 

Constantine 

Against  the 

the  Great. 

Arians. 

n. 

Constantinople. 

381 

Theodosius 

Against  the 

the  Great. 

Macedonians. 

in. 

Ephesus  . 

431 

Theodosius 

Against  the 

the  Younger. 

Nestorians. 

IV. 

Chalcedon 

451 

Marcian. 

Against  the 

Eutychians. 

V. 

Constantinople. 

553 

Justinian. 

Against  a 

Development  of 
Nestorianism. 

VI. 

Constantinople. 

680 

Constantine 

Against  a 

Pogonatus. 

Development  of 
Eutychianism. 

*  From  A  Key  to  Church  History,  where  is  a  clear  summary  of  the 

bject  of  each  Council. 


CHAPTER  III. 


Primititie  ptace?  anb  MoM  of  Wotsiif. 

"  Think  ye  the  spires  tluit  glow  so  bright 
Ill/rout  of  yonder  setting  sun. 
Stand  by  tlieir  own  uns/mkefi  mi^ht  ? 

No ! — where  M'  upholding  grace  is  won 
We  dare  not  ask,  nor  Heaven  would  tell. 
But  sure  from  many  a  hidden  dell, 
From  many  a  rural  nook,  unthought  of,  there 
Rises  for  tluit  proud  world  tlie  Saints'  prevailing  prayer." 

Keble,  on  "  All  Saints  Day." 

"pUT  on  your  seven-league  boots,  Joan.  We  have  a 
long  walk  before  us,"  said  Mrs.  Askell.  Joan  looked 
up  in  surprise,  for  the  bedroom  and  the  passage  had  as 
yet  bounded  her  perambulations.  "  I  am  going  to  take 
you  to  a  distant  land  and  a  distant  time,  where  we  will 
visit  some  Christian  churches  of  early  days." 

To  this  journey  Joan  settled  contentedly.  Her  head 
was  aching  that  day,  and  she  sat  down  on  a  stool  at  her 
aunt's  feet,  and  lay  her  head  on  her  knee. 

"  Shut  your  eyes,"  said  her  aunt,  "  and  you  will  see  my 
churches  the  better.  The  first  is  dull  and  gloomy  indeed  ; 
you  can  scarcely  see,  for  your  eyes  are  dazzled  with  the 
sweet  warm  air  of  Italy ;  you  are  outside  of  the  Eternal 
City,  Rome,  and  you  have  turned  into  a  long,  narrow 
passage  underground.  You  have  come  down  a  steep 
flight  of  stone  steps,  and  the  air  strikes  chill,  and  makes 
you  shiver.  A  strange,  faint  smell  there  makes  you 
shudder  too  ;  it  is  not  damp,  close  air  alone  ;  it  is  the 
mouldering  odour  of  tombs,  and  you  are  in  a  land  of 


26         PRIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


tombs.  The  faint,  smoky  flare  of  the  torches  we  hold 
strikes  redly  on  the  walls,  so  close  that  you  could  touch 
both  with  outstretched  hands.  The  stone  is  dark  and 
coarse  ;  but  what  strikes  us  most  is  the  manner  in  which 
it  is  honeycombed  from  floor  to  roof  with  long,  low  doors 
or  openings,  closed  up  in  divers  manners,  some  with  one 
long  tile,  some  with  two  or  three ;  here  and  there  is  a 
slab  of  marble.  Most  of  them  are  inscribed  in  odd,  rude 
characters,  and  some  have  rough  drawings  carved  or 
scratched  upon  them.  Here  is  one  quite  fresh  ;  let  us 
examine  it  closely.  The  words  are  in  Latin.  This  is  what 
they  mean  :  '  Innocentia,  the  wife  of  Issiguaris,  who 
lilted  with  him  happily  for  ten  years  and  twelve  days j 
who  departed  out  of  this  world  on  the  Ides  of  August, 
when  Gallicanus  was  Consul' — i.e.  about  a.d.  320.  The 
slab  has  but  just  been  placed  there ;  the  poor  bereaved 
Issiguaris  has  but  now  turned  weeping  away.  The 
pictures  of  which  1  have  spoken  are  very  rough,  and  all 
are  symbols — a  dove,  for  the  Spirit  of  Peace  (St.  Luke 
iii.  22) ;  a  seven-branched  candlestick,  for  the  Seven 
Spirits  of  God  (Rev.  iv.  5)  ;  a  cup,  for  that  Sacramental 
Cup  of  St.  Matt.  xxvi.  27,  28.  Here,  again,  is  a  tomb — 
a  hole  cut  out  in  the  wall— just  finished  and  prepared  for 
its  occupant,  perhaps  as  yet  a  living  person,  who  has  pro- 
vided this  storied  chamber  against  the  day  of  his  death. 
It  has  rude  paintings  on  it — to  our  eyes  a  child's  daub, 
but  in  high  art  for  those  primitive  workers.  Here  is  the 
Good  Shepherd,  with  His  sheep  around  Him.  We  shall 
not  anywhere  find  the  two  devotional  scenes  most  com- 
mon now,  the  Virgin  and  Child,  or  the  Crucifi.xion. 

"  Our  passage  has  many  windings  and  cross-paths  ;  it 
is  an  easy  place  wherein  to  lose  oneself ;  not  a  few  have 
here  been  lost,  and  lost  for  ever. 

"  Hark  !  there  is  some  faint,  sweet,  distant  music,  the 


THE  CATACOMBS. 


27 


far,  dim  sound  of  voices.  Let  us  make  towards  it.  As 
our  path  winds,  the  melody  grows  loud  and  low  again  ; 
but  now  it  breaks  out  in  strong,  echoing  power,  and  we 
find  ourselves  in  somewhat  freer  air.  We  are  in  a  small 
room.  Here  are  many  torches  fixed  or  held,  and  through 
the  smoke  we  discern  a  little  company— those  who  are 
singing.  We  also  make  out  presently  the  pictured  walls, 
with  low,  arched  recesses  round  about  for  tombs.  We 
are  in  one  of  the  churches  of  the  Catacombs.*  Here,  in 
persecuting  times,  the  Christians  used  to  meet.  Some 
say  that  the  existence  of  these  Catacombs  was  unknown 
to  their  persecutors.  But  that  could  hardly  be.  We 
must  rather  suppose  that,  having  constructed  them  as  in- 
tricately and  secretly  as  possible,  with  dark  and  dangerous 
winding  labyrinths,  to  which  Christians  alone  possessed 
the  clue,  the  faithful  trusted  to  worship  here  in  greater 
safety  than  elsewhere. 

"  We  cannot  stay  to  pray  with  this  small,  holy,  perse- 
cuted band.  Their  voices  come  feebly  to  us  over  the 
buried  ages  ;  their  language  is  unknown.  Hereafter  we 
may  trace  some  clue  to  that  which  they  are  saying. 

"  For  a  moment  we  are  dazzled,  blinded  by  the  smoke  ; 
then  all  fades,  and  we  are — where.''  Not  yet  in  any  great 
brightness,  though  the  gloom  is  a  little  dissipated.  We 
are  in  a  Christian  land  in  the  north  of  Africa,  '  the  parts 
of  Libya  about  Cyrcne,'  and  although  no  service  is  at 
this  moment  proceeding,  we  may  enter  the  church 
behind  those  two  men,  one  in  a  priest's  dress,  the  other 
evidently  a  distinguished  stranger,  to  whom  all  is  being 
explained.!  Moreover,  we  could  at  any  time  go  in,  for  in 
early  ages  the  doors  of  God's  house  were  never  shut.  A 

*  '^vs.QO-ti's  Letters  from  Rome. 

t  Sulpitius  Sevcrus,  the  ecclesiastical  historian,  from  whom  this  short 
account  is  derived.    See  Bingham's  Antiquities,  book  viii.  ch.  ii. 


28         PKIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


little  way  under  the  palm  trees,  and  here  is  the  church. 
Such  a  little,  low  place  !  So  low  that  the  men  must  stoop 
on  entering,  and  even  inside  can  scarcely  stand  upright. 
The  walls  are  not  made  of  stone,  nor  even  of  planks  of 
wood,  but  of  a  sort  of  basketwork,  '  small  rods  interwoven 
one  with  another.'  But,  in  spite  of  its  humility,  it  is  a 
genuine  Christian  church  ;  there  are  the  altar,  the  font, 
and  many  signs  of  love  in  garlands  and  bunches  of 
foliage  and  flowers.  Maybe  here,  as  in  an  early  French 
church,  the  sacramental  bread  was  given  in  a  basket  of 
osiers,  and  the  wine  in  a  glass  cup.  The  priest  has  a 
dark,  African  face,  but  there  are  great  dignity  and  sim- 
plicity in  his  look  and  manner  ;  and  well  there  may  be, 
for  never  was  a  holier  little  flock  than  his.  'The  men 
who  frequented  these  churches  were  men  of  the  Golden 
Age  and  purest  morals  ;  they  neither  bought  nor  sold 
anything  ;  they  knew  not  what  fraud  or  theft  was  ;  they 
neither  had  nor  desired  to  have  silver  or  gold,  which 
other  mortals  set  such  a  value  upon.'  Do  you  know 
Bishop  Coxe's  'Dreamland,'  in  his  Christian  Ballads? 
No  ?  I  will  show  it  you.  This  tiny  African  church,  with 
its  happy  sisters,  must  have  been  the  antique  prototj'pe 
of  his  poem.  The  stranger  is  taking  leave,  and  thanking 
the  priest  for  his  attentions  ;  he  offers  him  ten  gold  pieces. 
With  quiet  dignity  the  African  puts  them  back,  saying — 
'  The  Church  was  not  built,  but  rather  destroyed,  by  gold ; 
its  power  is  of  a  higher  nature.' 

"  I  said  that  the  gloom  still  hung  here.  It  was  but 
the  gloom  of  remoteness  and  ignorance.  Already  for  a 
hundred  years  the  Church  had  raised  her  head,  and  put 
on  her  clothing  of  wrought  gold ;  but  the  little  brother- 
hood in  Africa  was  free  from  the  temptations  of  splendour, 
and  perhaps  was  in  God's  sight  by  so  much  brighter  and 
more  rich." 


A  CHURCH  IN  TYRE. 


29 


PLAN  OF  THE  CHURCH  OF  BISHOP  PAULINUS 
OF  TYRE  (Fourth  Century). 


NARTHEX 


NARTHEX 


OR 


AREA 


C  rcat  Porch  cast 

"  One  more  instance.  This  is  a  sudden  change  from 
the  lowliness  of  that  wattled  building.  We  are  in  the 
lordly  city  of  Tyre.  A  crowd  of  folk  in  gala  dress  are 
hurrying  towards  a  handsome  porch  in  a  wall,  which 


PRIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


forms  part  of  a  building  of  vast  size  and  excellent  ma- 
terial and  workmanship.  *  Take  this  plan  of  the  building; 
you  can  then  follow  me  better. 

"  Entering  at  the  great  gate  (which  faces  the  east,  the 
altar  being  at  the  west ;  in  early  churches  there  was  no 
strict  rule  about  this)  we  pass  through  a  crowd  of  poor, 
who  will  wait  at  the  porches  for  the  alms  of  those  who 
have  communicated.  The  holy  Chrysostom  calls  them 
The  Guards  of  the  Royal  Palace. 

"  We  are  now  in  a  wide  court,  open  to  the  sky,  with  a 
great  basin  or  fountain  of  water  in  the  midst,  in  which 
those  who  enter  dip  their  hands  and  sometimes  bathe 
their  faces.  All  round  the  court  are  porticoes  or  cloisters. 
Certain  sad-faced  beings,  standing  beneath  this  shelter, 
beg  our  prayers.  They  are  penitents,  who  dare  go  no 
farther.  This  is  called  the  Area  or  Narihex  (literally,  a 
reed,  the  shape  of  the  part  thus  named  inside  the  temple 
being  often  long  and  narrow).  Opposite  to  us  rises  the 
vast  building  itself,  entered  by  three  gates,  the  central 
one  very  wide  and  high,  and  the  doors  formed  of  sculp- 
tured brass,  that  glows  and  burns  in  the  sunshine.  We 
move  on.  We  are  within  the  building.  There  is  a  solemn 
silence,  a  '  dim,  religious  light.'  Our  senses  receive  a 
pleasing  impression  of  coolness  and  vastness.  There  is  a 
smell  of  fragrant  wood,  for  the  nave  (as  we  call  this  part 
of  our  churches)  is  ceiled  with  cedar.  Certain  wooden 
rails  even  here  keep  back  the  hearers;  that  is  those  peni- 
tents and  young  catechumens  {i.e.  those  who  are  being 
catechized)  who  might  come  thus  far  and  no  farther,  and 
also  heretics  and  Jews.  They  were  admitted  to  the  public 
reading  and  the  sermon,  but  not  to  prayers  or  the  bless- 
ing. In  this  part,  the  true  Narthex,  they  quietly  take 
their  places.    I  must  tell  you  we  only  accompany  them 

*  From  EuSEBius  and  Bingham. 


A  BAPTISTERY. 


because  we  are  invisible  shades,  for  the  women  have  all 
gone  round  to  the  doors  where  deaconesses  were  waiting 
to  guide  them  to  their  seats  in  a  gallery  supported  on 
those  pillars  which  you  see  marked  on  either  side  of  the 
Ambon, 

"  Through  the  Royal  Gates,  where,  if  a  king  were 
among  the  worshippers,  he  would  lay  by  his  crown,  we 
pass  into  the  Naos  or  temple  itself,  where  sit  the  com- 
municants and  the  penitents,  who,  though  they  might  not 
share  the  feast,  remained  to  witness  the  administration. 
In  the  centre  is  the  Ambon  (pronounced  kmbone)  or 
reading-desk.  The  word  means  an  ascent,  and  it  is  a 
high  pulpit-like  erection,  mounted  by  stairs.  But  it  is 
seldom  used  for  sermons;  they  are  generally  preached 
from  the  altar-steps.  Before  us,  the  object  on  which  our 
eyes  are  sure  to  rest,  is  the  sanctuary,  called  the  Bema  or 
platform,  our  Chancel,  from  the  cancelli,  or  rails,  which 
part  it  from  the  nave.  They  are  more  than  rails,  though, 
in  this  fine  church ;  they  become  a  screen  of  carved  open- 
work. No  women  may  pass  the  gates  of  this  screen,  which 
are,  moreover,  provided  with  rich  curtains  to  be  let  down 
when  the  Bread  and  Wine  are  consecrated,  as  a  sight  too 
holy  for  any  but  those  devoted  to  God's  service. 

" '  When  you  see  the  veils  withdrawn,'  says  Chrysostom 
{i.e.  to  admit  to  the  sacrament), '  then  think  you  see  heaven 
opened  and  the  angels  descending  from  above.'  Through 
the  carved  screen  we  dimly  see  the  altar  with  a  carved 
canopy,  and  behind  it,  in  a  semicircle,  the  high  seats  for 
the  clergy,  the  Bishop's  in  the  midst.  The  floor  in  this 
holy  place  is  of  marble,  and  the  best  of  all  that  is  rich 
and  lovely  is  collected  here.  See !  the  service  Is  about  to 
begin.  Our  dream  must  vanish.  We  have  left  Tyre,  and 
are  here  at  home  again  in  the  nineteenth  century." 

Joan  held  the  plan,  and  was  still  examining  it. 


32         PRIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


"What  is  this  square,  called  the  Baptistery?"  she  asked. 

"A  Baptistery  is  a  place  where  persons  are  baptized, 
and  the  font,  instead  of  being  placed  in  the  main  building, 
has  a  special  house  devoted  to  it.  This  is  still  the  case 
in  some  Italian  cathedrals." 

"And  is  this  large  space  round  the  church  a  burial- 
ground  ?" 

"  Probably  so.  The  dead  do  not  seem  to  have  been 
buried  in  churches  for  several  hundred  years.  But  the 
great  use  of  this  large  court  was  as  a  place  of  refuge. 
Hither,  from  the  time  of  Constantine,  the  oppressed  (not 
the  guilty)  might  flee  and  be  safe  from  their  enemies." 

"  Auntie,"  said  Joan,  "  this  church  is  so  large,  I  think 
it  must  be  a  cathedral." 

"What  is  a  cathedral,  Joan?" 

"  1  don't  quite  know.    A  large  church?" 

"  It  is  not  the  size  of  the  building  that  makes  it  so, 
dear,  but  the  Bishop's  chair,  or  cathedra.  Wherever  the 
Bishop  has  his  throne,  that  is  the  cathedral.  Look,  for 
instance,  at  St.  Paul's  and  Westminster  Abbey,  which  you 
have  seen.  The  Bishop  of  London  has  his  throne  in 
St.  Paul's  ;  it  is  therefore  a  cathedral.  Westminster 
Abbey,  containing  no  cathedra,  or  Bishop's  throne,  is 
therefore  no  cathedral.  I  may  here  tell  you  the  meaning 
of  the  word  see,  implying  the  diocese  over  which  a  Bishop 
has  jurisdiction.  It  comes  from  the  Latin  word  sedes, 
meaning  simply  his  seatP 

"  Were  the  churches  very  gorgeously  fitted  up  ?" 

"  With  gold  and  gems,  very  gorgeously  when  there  were 
means  to  do  it ;  but  never  with  pictures.  Epiphanius,  an 
early  Bishop  (died  A.D.  403),  tore  down  from  a  church 
door  a  curtain  worked  with  an  image  of  Christ  or  of  a 
Saint,  and  ordered  it  to  be  used  for  the  shroud  of  some 
poor  man.  Nor  do  we  find  any  mention  of  crosses  i/is/de 


CHRIST  A  JEW. 


33 


a  church  until  after  the  time  of  Constantine.*  I  would 
not,  however,  maV:e  this  an  argument  against  the  use  of 
the  cross,  the  holy  and  simple  sign  of  our  salvation.  The 
altar  was  covered  with  tapestry  or  silk — many  rich  ladies 
gave  for  this  purpose  their  choicest  robes — and  with  a 
linen  cloth  during  the  Communion  Service. 

"  Now,  tell  me,  has  this  description  of  the  cathedral  at 
Tyre  reminded  you  of  anything?" 

"The  outer  courts,  and  the  great  fountain,  and  the 
veils,  and  place  of  refuge,  reminded  me  of  the  Jewish 
temple,  I  think,"  answered  Joan. 

"And  rightly.  It  is  interesting  to  trace  how  Christ 
came  not  to  destroy  the  Law,  but  to  fulfil  it.  Remember 
(what  is  often  unaccountably  forgotten)  that  He  was  a 
Jew,  and  a  most  devout  and  earnest  Jew;  that  His  fol- 
lowers were  Jews  ;  that  He  joined,  and  they  joined  long 
after  His  removal,  in  the  Jewish  services,  and  then  you 
will  not  wonder  that  many  of  the  types  and  symbols  are 
rather  fulfilled  and  explained  in  the  Christian  Church 
than  destroyed  and  forgotten.  We  see  this  still  in  such 
account  as  we  have  of  early  Christian  services. 

"Of  the  earliest  times  (i.e.  of  the  second  century)  we 
learn  this  from  Justin  Martyr.  '  Upon  the  day  called 
Sunday  all  that  live  either  in  city  or  country  meet  together 
in  the  same  place,  where  the  writings  of  the  Apostles  and 
prophets  are  read,  as  much  as  time  will  give  leave.  When 
the  reader  has  done,  the  Bishop  makes  a  sermon  to  the 
people,  and  animates  them  to  the  practice  of  such  lovely 
precepts.  At  the  conclusion  of  this  discourse  all  rise  up 
together  and  pray  [the  early  Christians  commonly  knelt 
in  prayer  on  week-tlays,  but  stood  on  Sunday,  in  honour 
of  the  Resurrection  t],  and  prayers  being  over,  as  I  now 

*  liiNGHAM's  Anfiguities,  book  viii.  ch.  vi.  sec.  20. 
+  From  Cree's  Trm  Portrait  of  ilie  Primitive  Church. 
D 


34         PRIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


said,  there  is  bread  and  wine  and  water  offered  [the 
sacramental  wine  was  commonly  mixed  with  water  in 
early  times],  and  the  Bishop,  as  before,  sends  up  prayers 
and  thanksgivings  with  all  the  fervency  he  is  able,  and 
the  people  conclude  all  with  the  joyful  exclamation  of 
Amen.  Then  the  consecrated  elements  are  distributed 
to  and  partaken  of  by  all  that  are  present,  and  sent  to 
the  absent  by  the  hands  of  the  deacons.'* 

"  I  will  now  very  shortly  tell  you  the  heads  of  our 
information  concerning  early  Church  worship.  I  cannot 
make  it  very  entertaining,  but  it  is  very  useful. 

"From  Apostolic  times  there  have  been  three,  and 
only  three,  orders  of  the  ministry — Bishops,  priests,  and 
deacons.t  The  name  Angel,  applied  to  a  Bishop  in  the 
Revelation,  is  from  the  Jewish  term  for  the  chief  priest 
of  a  synagogue. 

"Women  were  only  allowed  to  serve  as  deaconesses. 
In  this  office  ttiey  visited  the  sick  and  catechized  girls,  &c. 

"  The  priest's  vestments  were  of  white  linen,  with 
coloured  scarf. 

"  The  service  was  in  the  laiiguage  of  the  country.  As 
nearly  as  we  can  gather,  it  proceeded  as  follows  :  First 
the  Morning  Psalm  (Ixiii.)  was  sung  ;  then  prayers,  be- 
ginning with  confession  and  ending  with  thanksgi\nng ; 
reading  the  Scriptures  ;  hymns  or  psalms  sung  by  the 
congregation,  north  and  south  sides  taking  up  the  alter- 
nate verses  ;  then  a  semion  with  prayer  for  the  cate- 
chumens, ending  thus  :  '  Ye  that  are  catechumens,  arise  ! 
Ask  for  the  peace  of  God  through  His  Christ,  that  this 
day  and  all  the  time  of  your  life  may  be  peaceful  and 
sinless ;  that  your  ends  may  be  Christian ;  that  God 

'  From  Brett's  ZrVwr^Vi. 

t  The  word  Bishop  means  an  overseer  ;  priest,  a  presbyter  or  elder  • 
deacon,  a  servant. 


A  PRIMITIVE  SERVICE.  35 


may  be  merciful  and  gracious  ;  that  your  sins  may  be 
remitted ;  commend  yourself  to  the  only,  unbegotten 
God,  through  His  Christ.  Bow  down  and  receive  the 
blessing.'*  Penitents  and  catechumens  were  then  dis- 
missed (except,  as  I  told  you,  a  privileged  few)  ;  then 
came  a  bidding  prayer,  not  unlike  the  Litany,  and  prayer 
for  the  whole  state  of  Cln-ist's  Church.  Then  the  offertory, 
when  all  communirants  -^ave  what  they  could ;  often  wine, 
bread,  fruits,  oil  for  the  lamps.  That  which  was  required 
for  the  Eucharist  was  taken,  and  the  rest  kept  for  a  Chris- 
tian feast  common  to  ricli  and  poor.  The  Communion 
Service  then  followed  ;  psalms  and  hymns  were  sung  in 
it,  but  the  Commandments  were  not  read  before  the 
Reformation. 

"  The  Lord's  Prayer  was  used  in  all  devotions.  Lives 
of  martyrs,  or  letters  from  sister  churches,  were  sometimes 
read  as  sermons.  The  Creed  was  first  publicly  recited 
in  the  daily  service  about  a.d.  471.  The  prayers  were 
certainly  intoned;  that  is,  chanted  on  one  notc.t 

"  Now,  in  the  general  arrangement  of  this  service  there  ' 
is  much  resemblance  to  the  Jewish  arrangement  of  prayers 
and  praise,  lessons  and  preaching.  The  aiiiifihotial  way 
of  chanting  {i.e.  each  side  taking  up  alternate  verses)  was 
Jewish  ;  so  was  the  custom  of  intoning.  Their  prayers 
began  with  the  words  used  by  us  :  '  O  Lord,  open  Thou 
our  lips  !  And  our  mouth  shall  show  forth  Thy  praise !' 

"I  will  give  you  a  list  which  will  help  you  to  compare 
the  usages  of  the  Church  under  the  two  dispensations. 

"  Do  you  wonder  why  I  seem  to  press  this  point  ? 
firstly,  because  it  is  a  truth,  and  that  is  enough ;  espe- 
cially as  it  is  a  trutli  which  all  might  know  if  they  would 

*  Lil„rxy,.fSt.  Clcrn-ut,  Ni-:ilc;'s  Transkili..,, 

+  Thesu  Malcmunlsai.-  cliiclly  tnkcn  frum  llic  Ruv.  E.  D.  Ckke's  True 
Portrait  of  the  Primitive  Church. 


36         PRIMITIVE  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP. 


think  or  see,  but  which  is  commonly  ignored  or  forgotten ; 

secondly,  because  if  we  owe  such  a  boon  as  any  part  of 
our  dear  sei-vices  to  the  Jews  or  any  other  people,  we 
ought  to  rejoice  to  pay  the  debt  of  gratitude  ;  thirdly, 
because  such  considerations  help  to  enlarge  our  views, 
to  free  us  from  the  cold,  lifeless  way  of  thinking  that  we 
English  people  owe  all,  even  our  Church,  to  ourselves, 
and  are  able  to  stand  by  ourselves.  Never  was  a  more 
fatal  idea.  The  more  our  branch  of  the  Church  cherishes 
it,  the  drier  she  will  grow,  the  more  fruitless  and  broken 
from  the  life-giving  stem. 

"  Here,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "are  books  to  carry  you  on 
again  in  this  new  line  of  study.  The  first,  you  see,  an 
eas\-  tract ;  then  Eusebius ;  and  here  is  a  dear  old  brown 
Bingham,  smelling  of  dust." 

"  Oh  ! "  cried  Joan,  as  a  book  half  a  yard  long  was  laid 
before  her. 

"  Uon't  be  frightened.  These  big  books  are  like  New- 
foundland dogs,  very  formidable  to  look  at,  and  generally 
'very  pleasant  on  further  acquaintance.  You  will  find  a 
great  deal  that  is  delightful  in  Bingham,  that  is  to  say,  if 
you  really  care  for  the  subject,  and  are  not  looking  merely 
for  amusement  or  a  little  superficial  knowledge  that  will 
do  harm  rather  than  good. 

"  When  I  was  a  little  girl,  I  was  often  found  curled  up 
on  a  certain  old  window-scat  in  my  father's  librar)',  with 
the  curtain  wrapped  round  my  shoulders,  eyes  and  eras 
entirely  absorbed  ni  this  deai'  old  big  fellow." 


OUTWARD  FORM  OF  THE  CHURCH.  37 


THE  OUTWARD  FORM  OF  THE  CHURCH.* 


BEFORE  THE  GOSPEL. 

Consecration  of  places  of 
worship. 

Lower  part,  raised  part,  Jeru- 
salem end,  with  ark. 

Places  of  worship  built  from 
east  to  west. 

Consecration  of  persons. 

Chief  priests,  priests,  and 
Levites. 

Daily  service. 

Prayers,  psalmody,  scripture 
sermons. 

Antiphonal  chanting  and  in- 
toning. 

Material  sacrifices. 

Circumcision  and  Passover. 

Marriage,  and  purilication, 
and  burial. 

Imposition  of  hands  on  syna- 
gogue ministry. 

Visitation  and  absolution  of 
sick  and  dying. 

Confirmation  of  circumcision 
covenant. 

Temple-rate  (Exod.  xxx.  13; 
Neh.  X.  32  ;  Matt.  xvii.  24). 

Linen  ephod,  and  richer 
vestments. 

Sabbath. 

Passover,  Pentecost,  Taber- 
nacles. 

Day  of  expiation,  with  forty 

days'  preparation. 
Putting  out  of  synagogue. 


UNDER  THE  GOSPEL. 

Ditto. 

Nave,    chancel,  sanctuary, 

with  altar. 
Places  of  worship  built  from 

west  to  east. 
Ditto. 

Bishops,  priests,  and  deacons. 

Ditto. 
Ditto. 

Ditto. 

Spiritual  sacrifice  of  Eucha- 
rist. 

Baptism  and  Eucharist. 
Marriage,    and  churching, 

and  burial. 
Ditto  on  clergy. 

Ditto. 

Confirmation. 
Church-rates. 

Linen  surplice,  and  richer 

vestments. 
Lord's  Day. 

Easter,  Whitsuntide,  Christ- 
mas. 

Good  Friday  and  Lent, 
Excommimication. 


*  From  CKEii's  True  Portn, 


iiit  oj  the  Priiniti^'f  Churclu 


CHAPTER  IV. 


"Dram  near,  O  Son  of  Cod,  draw  near. 
Us  ivith  Thy  flaming  eyes  behoU, 
Still  in  Thy  falling  Church  afpear. 
And  let  our  cattdlestick  be  gold. 

"Still  Iwld  the  stars  in  Thy  Right  Hand, 
And  let  titem  in  Thy  Ittstre  glow, 
Tlie  lights  of  a  benighted  land, 
T/ie  angels  of  Thy  Church  below. 

"  Make  good  tlt£ir  Apostolic  boast, 

TIteir  high  commission  let  tliem  proT'e, 
Be  Temples  of  tlie  Holy  GItost, 

And  filled  with  faith  and  hope  and  love. 

"  The  worthy  successors  of  those 

IVlio  first  adorned  tlte  sacred  line  ; 
Bold  let  them  stand  before  their foes. 
And  dare  assert  tlieir  right  divine. 

"  T/uir  Itearts from  things  rf  earth  remove, 
Sprinkle  tliem,  Lord,Jromsin  and  fear. 
Fix  their  affections  alt  above. 
And  lay  up  all  their  treasure  there. 

"Give  tliem  an  ear  to  Jiear  tlte  Word 
Thou  speakest  to  Thy  Churches  tunv, 
Ami  let  all  tongues  confess  their  Lord, 
And  let  all  knees  to  Jesus  bmu.  Anurn." 

From  Wesley's  Hymnal. 

JOAN  had  been,  for  the  first  time  since  her  iUness,  to 
morning  prayer  in  St.  Salvador's.  A  sense  of  deep 
gratitude  for  her  recovery  had  added  to  the  charm  of  the 
sweet,  quiet  service.    She  felt  that  delicious,  enthusiastic 


THE  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


39 


joy  which  only  comes  to  the  young,  and  to  them  not  often. 
But  rare  as  it  is,  it  may  live  in  memory  as  the  earnest  of 
a  future  visit  to  that  land  whence — so  the  poet  says  * — 
we  came,  and  where  again  we  may  one  day  hope  to  "  hear 
the  mighty  waters  rolling  evermore." 

The  double  line  of  delicate  arches,  the  lace-like  fret- 
work of  the  rercdos,  dashed  and  flecked  with  sunshine 
from  the  southern  windows,  the  mingling  voices  of  the 
choir,  and  the  bird-like  song  of  one  young  lad  rising 
above  the  rest,  remained  in  her  heart  like  a  beautiful 
dream  long  after.  She  was  so  glad  that  the  lesson  that 
day  was  on  the  English  Church  !  She  had  felt  grateful 
and  loving  to  that  "  Mother  out  of  sight ; "  and  was  in 
precisely  the  mood  to  "  listen  well." 

"  Remember,  dear  Joan,  first  of  all,"  began  Mrs.  Askell, 
"  and  guard  the  remembrance  well,  and  spread  the  know- 
ledge where  you  can,  that  our  branch  of  the  Church  is  no 
new  thing,  born  only  300  years  ago,  at  the  Reformation, 
and  only  a  little  older  than  Dissent.  Not  so.  The  Chris- 
tian Church  in  this  land  is  as  old  as  Christianity,  or  very 
nearly  so.  When  we  say  '  the  English  Church,'  we  mean 
the  Church  of  Christ,  as  planted  here  by  God's  providence ; 
differing  in  some  particulars,  as  circumstances  and  the 
nature  of  our  people  moulded  its  outer  forms,  from  the 
Roman  and  Eastern  branches.  To  some  these  differences 
seem  so  important,  and  our  forms  so  excellent  beyond 
parallel,  that  they  despise  the  other  branches  of  the 
Church ;  some  find  our  ways  so  unsatisfactory  where 
they  differ  from  the  rest  that  they  must  needs  join  another 
communion,  in  order  to  remedy  our  defects.  Both  are 
wrong.  The  first  are  liable  to  grow  narrow  and  bigoted 
in  their  views,  and  to  forget  that  there  are  other  branches 
of  the  one  true  Vine;  the  second  are  forgetting  their 

•  See  Wordswokth's  perfect  ode  On  Jtitiinatious  oj  Mortality, 


THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


loyal  duty  to  God  in  regarding  with  due  humility  the 
place  and  circumstances  in  which  He  has  planted  them. 

"  We  have  no  sure  information  concerning  the  intro- 
duction of  Christianity  into  this  island.  It  is  conjectured 
by  some  (though  with  little  probability)  that  St.  Paul 
preached  here  ;  by  others  that  Bran,  father  of  Caractacus 
— the  British  chieftain  who  was  carried  captive  to  Rome — 
brought  back  thence  the  '  good  news '  of  the  Gospel.  By 
others,  that  Joseph  of  Arimathea  was  our  missionary. 
And  this  tradition,  though  resting  on  less  authenticated 
foundation  than  the  second,  is  far  fuller  and  more 
beautiful.  It  branches  out  into  the  exquisite  legend  of 
the  Sancgreal." 

"Which  I  have  read  of  in  Tennyson's  Idylls  of  the 
King,  I  remember,"  said  Joan.  "  But  I  never  thoroughly 
understood  it.    Will  you  tell  me  the  legend  ?" 

"  Since  you  ask  me,  I  will,"  assented  IMrs.  Askell ; 
"though  what  is  purely  legendary  should  hardly  enter 
into  the  matter  of  our  lessons.  But  certainly  this  story 
has  divine  truth  in  it. 

"  The  word  Sancgreal  comes  (most  probably)  from  the 
Provencal  grazal,  a  cup ;  meaning  therefore  Holy  Cup. 
The  tradition  runs,  that  when  Joseph  of  Arimathea 
washed  our  Lord's  body  for  the  tomb,  he  preserved  the 
blood  in  the  cup  from  which  the  Holy  Sacrament  had 
been  administered.  After  being  long  imprisoned  by  the 
Jews,  he  was  set  free  by  the  armies  of  \'espasian  at  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem.  He  then,  with  the  precious 
cup,  which  he  had  preserved,  came  with  twelve  comrades 
to  Britain.  Their  journey  was  marked  by  many  marvels, 
the  cup  providing  delicate  food  whenever  there  was  need. 
After  St.  Joseph's  death,  it  came  finally  into  the  posses- 
sion of  a  king,  who  built  for  it  a  gorgeous  shrine,  where 
the  altar-pieces  were  of  sapphire,  decked  with  a  sun  of 


SIM  GALAHAD. 


41 


diamonds  and  a  moon  of  topaz  ;  the  window  was  of 
crystal ;  an  enormous  carbuncle  burned  above  the  chapel 
tower ;  within  the  tower  was  the  shrine  where  the  Blood 
was  kept.* 

"But  the  Sancgreal  was  not  confined  to  its  beautiful 
temple.  It  had  mystic  powers  now,  and  could  appear 
and  disappear  at  will.  The  search  or  quest  of  it  was  the 
object  of  the  wanderings  of  King  Arthur's  knights.  Only 
the  perfectly  pure  might  sec  it.  Sir  Launcelot,  the  brave 
but  guilty,  saw  it  only  in  dreams  : — 

"  'A  sinful  man,  and  unconfessed, 
He  took  the  Sancgreal's  holy  quest, 
And  slumb'ring  saw  the  vision  high 
He  might  not  view  with  open  eye.'  t 

"  Sir  Galahad,  the  stainless  knight,  was  alone  permitted 
to  contemplate  its  awful  glories.  Having  pierced  a  magic 
wood,  and  reached  the  castle  which  contained  the  Grail, 
he  had  a  vision  of  the  body  of  St.  James  of  Jerusalem 
borne  by  Angels.  '  Then  one  appeared  unto  him  and  his 
comrades,  which  said  unto  them:  "My  knights,  my  ser- 
vants, and  my  true  children,  which  be  come  out  of  deadly 
life,  1  will  now  no  longer  hide  me  from  you.  Now  hold  and 
receive  the  very  meat  which  ye  have  so  long  desired." 
Then  marvellous  food  was  offered,  of  which  Sir  Galahad 
first,  and  afterwards  his  fellows,  partook  ;  and,  departing, 
they  came  to  the  shore,  and  there  found  a  ship  in  which 
was  the  Grail,  covered  with  red  samite,  set  on  a  silver 
table.  Sir  Galahad  fell  on  his  knees,  and  long  adored  the 
sacred  vessel ;  then,  feeling  earth  could  hold  no  greater 
joy,  but  only  Heaven,  he  prayed  to  leave  the  v/orld,  and 
a  voice  answered  him  :  "  Whensoever  thou  askest  the 
death  of  thy  body,  thou  shalt  have  it,  and  then  shalt  thou 

•  Millington's  King  Arthur  and  his  Knights. 
t  Sir  Walter  Scott. 


42  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 

find  the  life  of  thy  soul."  So  it  happened ;  for  having  once 
seen  the  vision  of  a  Man  surrounded  by  a  great  fellowship 
of  Angels,  kneeling  before  the  Grail,  which  was  now 
always  in  his  possession,  and  having  been  shown  things 
spiritual  and  awful,  Galahad  held  up  his  hands  and  prayed 
to  die.  He  embraced  his  comrades,  kneeled  down  before 
the  Grail,  and  suddenly  his  soul  departed,  and  Angels 
bore  him  to  Heaven.  Then  a  hand  came  from  Heaven, 
and  took  the  Sancgreal  and  a  spear  which  was  with  it — 
the  spear  that  had  pierced  Christ's  side — and  bore  them 
upwards.'  You  know  the  fine  words  in  which  the  Laureate 
makes  Sir  Galahad  describe  his  vision — 

" '  A  gentle  sound,  an  awful  light ; 

Three  Angels  bear  the  Holy  Grail, 
With  folded  feet,  in  stoles  of  white, 

On  sleeping  wings  they  sail. 
Oh,  blessed  vision !  Blood  of  God ! 

My  spirit  beats  her  mortal  bars, 
As  down  dark  tides  the  glory  slides, 

And  star-like  mingles  with  the  stars.'  *'  * 

"  It  is  a  lovely  story,"  said  Joan.  "  But  surely  it  is  not 
true  1" 

"  It  may  be  true  as  an  allegory  is  true  ;  the  Pilgrim's 
Progress,  for  instance,  or  Hans  Andersen's  Story  of  the 
Bell.  It  has  an  inner  meaning.  The  mystic  food  points 
to  the  Communion  of  the  Body  and  Blood  of  Christ, 
and  from  the  story  of  Sir  Galahad  we  may  learn,  that 
although  penitent  sinners  may  win  pardon  and  bliss,  it  is 
only  the  constantly  pure  who  can  rejoice  in  the  constant 
and  close  presence  of  Him  who  is  all  purity,  t 

"As  for  the  story  of  St.  Joseph,  there  are  other  tradi- 

*  Tennyson's  Sir  Galahad. 

t  The  possession  of  the  Sancgreal  has  been  claimed  for  Geneva ;  a  cup 
of  agate  mounted  with  gold  and  enriched  with  gems,  which  is  believed  in 
Spain  to  be  the  identical  cup,  long  was,  perhaps  is  still,  kept  in  the  cathedral 
treasury  of  Valencia. 


ST.  JOSEPirS  THORN. 


43 


tions  that  he  came  to  Britain ;  and  at  Glastonbury  a  young 
thorn  still  stands,  the  offshoot  of  an  aged  tree  which  is 
said  to  have  had  this  origin  : — Joseph  of  Arimathea, 
having  come  thus  far,  was  preaching  there  on  Christmas 
Day,  when  the  heathen  threatened  his  life.  For  confir- 
mation of  the  truth  of  his  doctrine,  the  Saint  appealed  to 
miracle,  and  struck  his  staff  into  the  earth,  when,  lo !  it 
bloomed  and  bare  flowers  in  that  wintry  season.  The 
fount  of  this  pretty  legend  is  not  far  to  seek,  for  the  old 
thorn  growing  there  was  really  of  a  kind  which  flowers 
in  winter. 

"  But  we  must  leave  fiction  for  history.  When  Christi- 
anity was  first  preached  here,  the  land  was  held  partly 
by  the  Britons,  who  followed  the  bloody  religion  of  the 
Druids :  partly  by  the  Romans,  whose  temples  were 
chiefly  dedicated  to  the  Emperor  as  a  god.  As  the  new 
faith  grew,  the  heathen  temples  were  converted  into 
churches,  and  Bishops  placed  in  each  city.  Persecution 
reached  this  country  in  the  time  of  the  Empeiror  Diocletian. 
The  town  of  Lichfield  takes  its  name  from  the  Christians 
butchered  there  ;  Licid-field,  the  field  of  corpses.*  Our 
noted  proto-martyr  (first  martyr),  St.  Alban,  now  suffered. 
This  ballad  will  perhaps  give  you  a  more  interesting 
account  of  his  death  than  could  be  given  in  prose.  It 
happened  in  the  year  303. 

"ST.  ALHAN. 
"  '  It  was  the  time  when  Brit.iin's  Isle 
Was  ruled  by  Roman  bands, 
And  men  in  Britain  worshipped  still 

The  work  of  their  own  hands  : 
When  persecuted  Christian  souls 

To  caves  and  deserts  fled  ; 
Then  were  they  careful  most  to  pray. 
Because  they  prayed  in  dread. 

*  See  GiiiiSLEY's  story,  77«r  Siege  oj  Lkhjield. 


THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH, 


"'Then,  like  Cornelius,  Alban  lived, 

A  Roman  soldier  true  ; 
But  heathen  still,  for  nothing  he 

Of  Christian  teaching  knew ; 
Till  to  his  door  one  night  in  fear 

A  Christian  priest  did  come. 
And  prayed  for  shelter  from  his  foes. 

And  for  that  night  a  home. 

**  * "  I  am  a  messenger  of  God, 

Oh,  shelter  me,  I  pray  ! 
Unbar  the  door,  for  cruel  men 

Are  on  my  track  to-day." 
Then  Alban  let  him  in  with  haste. 

And  as  he  passed  the  door 
He  felt  a  blessing  in  his  heart 

He  ne'er  had  fell  before. 

***  All  night  the  priest  to  Alban  talked 

Of  Christ  and  of  His  cross  ; 
How  He  left  Heaven,  that  sinners  might 

Be  gainers  by  His  loss. 
And  with  him  prayed  in  holy  words. 

Till  morning  light  began  : 
Ere  Alban  saw  the  sun  in  Heaven 

He  was  a  Christian  man. 

**  *  But  ah  !  the  sweetest  talk  of  men 

Must  sometime  ended  be ; 
And  now  the  persecutors  knocked 

From  whom  the  priest  did  flee  ; 
And  now  the  two  must  part— but  first 

Alban  has  ta'en  the  gown. 
And  to  his  master  gives  in  haste 

The  cloak  that  was  his  own. 
"  *  They  part— but  ne'er  to  meet  again ; 

The  fugitive  alone 
By  a  back  entrance  issuing  forth. 

With  haste  again  is  gone  ; 
And  the  new  Christian  round  his  face 

Hath  closely  wrapped  the  hood. 
And  forthwith  at  the  door  he  meets 

The  messengers  of  blood. 
'"They  seized  him,  thinking  he  must  be 

The  man  for  whom  they  sought. 
And  straightway  to  the  general's  throne 

Their  prisoner  they  have  brought. 


ST.  ALBAN. 


45 


Anger  was  theirs,  and  great  amaze, 
When  from  his  face  the  hood 

Was  backward  thrown,  and  for  the  priest 
The  Roman  soldier  stood. 

"  * "  What  jest  is  this  ?"  the  general  said, 

"  Alban,  I  prithee,  tell ; 
For  jest  it  surely  must  be,  since 

I  know  thy  truth  so  well." 
"  No  jest  it  is — I  still  am  true," — 

Thus  did  the  soldier  say, 
"  I  was  a  pagan  yesterday, 

A  Christian  am  to-day  1 " 


" 'They  bore  him  on.    A  torrent  swift 

With  wild  waves  flowed  between  ; 
And  crowds  of  Christians  filled  the  bridge. 

Each  with  a  bough  of  green. 
But  Alban  hasted  on,  that  he 

Might  gain  a  martyr's  crown  ; 
He  hoped  to  be  in  Paradise 

Before  the  sun  went  down. 

"'Though  weak  with  pain,  he  plunges  in. 

And  to  the  hillock's  brow 
Is  come  :  they  wondered  much  before. 

But  more  they  wonder  now  ; 
And  he  who  should  have  slain  him  there 

Threw  down  his  sword,  and  cried — 
"O  Alban!  would  that  I  might  die 

For  thee,  or  by  thy  side  ! " 

**  *  'Tis  said  that  he  who  struck  the  blow 

That  killed  those  holy  men. 
Smitten  with  blindness,  never  saw 

The  light  of  day  again. 
But  this  I  know,  that  on  the  place 

Where  those  two  knelt  to  pray, 
A  stately  church  was  builded  up. 

And  standoth  to  this  day.' " 

"  The  persecution  lasted  only  two  years.  It  was  stopped 
by  Constantius,  the  father  of  Constantine  the  Great.  Con- 
stantius  was  viceroy  in  Britain,  and  was  a  wise  and  good 

*  Ballads  from  Euglish  History. 


46  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 

man.  British  Bishops  were  at  various  councils  of  the 
Church  upon  the  Continent  in  the  years  314,  347,  and  359. 

"'I'he  people  of  our  island  were  an  uncivilized  race, 
and  their  churches  resembled  that  wattled  one  which  we 
saw  in  Africa.  The  Irish  were  at  this  time  the  most 
zealous  Christians.  They  have  always  been  a  clever 
people,  and  their  warmth  was  then  used  for  good.  In 
Uruidical  times  Ireland  had  already  been  called  the  Holy 
Island,  and  when  Christianized  was  again  named  the  Isle 
of  Saints.  The  Apostle  of  Ireland  was  St.  Patrick,  who 
was  born  probably  in  Scotland  about  A.D.  372.  He  was 
taken  captive  in  some  skirmish,  and  carried  as  a  slave  to 
Ireland.  Here,  having  served  six  years,  he  had  dreams 
in  which  God  commanded  him  to  fly  to  Gaul.  He  was 
received  into  the  monastery  of  St.  Martin  at  Tours,  and 
studied  there  for  the  priesthood.  When  thirty  years  old 
he  again  had  strange  dreams — that  a  letter  was  brought 
to  him  inscribed,  'The  voice  of  the  Irish,'  and  that  he 
heard  voices  calling:  'We  entreat  thee,  holy  youtli,  to 
come  and  walk  still  among  us.'  Doubtless,  he  o.?"ten 
thought  of  his  old  bondage  with  a  desire  to  return  good 
for  evil.  The  dreams  remind  us  of  the  man  of  Macedonia 
who  appeared  to  Paul.  (Acts  xvi.  9.)  But  though  his 
heart  was  full  of  the  matter,  he  waited  till  God  should 
open  a  way.  This  power  of  waiting  patiently  seems  to 
be  one  of  the  clearest  signs  of  a  great  character. 

"  Now  at  tb.is  time  Britain  was  plagued  by  the  false 
teaching  of  a  heretic  named  Morgan  or  Pelagius.  Two 
priests  first,  and  afterwards  a  Bishop,  had  been  despatched 
by  the  Pope,  but  they  were  not  verj'  successful.  At  last, 
A.D.  432  or  440,  St.  Patrick  was  consecrated  Bishop,  and 
came  over  with  twenty  comrades.  He  landed  in  Ireland, 
naturally,  that  being  the  seat  of  learning  and  religion  in 
those  days,  and  therefore  most  harassed  by  the  doctrine 


ST.  COLUMBA. 


47 


of  Pelagius.  St.  Patrick  reached  the  neighbourhood  of 
the  palace  of  Tara  when  the  King  Laoghairc  was  about 
to  hold  a  Druidic  feast  there.  The  opening  ceremony 
was  the  kindling  of  a  fire  by  the  King,  and  before  this 
should  be  done  it  was  a  great  crime  to  light  a  fire  within 
sight  of  the  palace.  Patrick,  ignorant  of  this,  began 
preparing  food  ;  and  when  the  smoke  rose  from  the 
newly -kindled  wood,  messengers  came  running  to  seize 
so  great  a  malefactor.  When  brought  before  Laoghaire, 
however,  his  brave  and  eloquent  speech  won  a  hearing 
for  his  teaching,  and  thenceforth  he  was  treated  with 
much  respect ;  the  King's  brother  and  other  great  persons 
were  soon  converted  ;  many  women  also,  of  one  of  whom 
we  hear  that  she  was  'blessed  and  beautiful.'* 

"When  St.  Patrick  died,  aged  seventy-eight,  his  in- 
fluence did  not  die  ;  holy  men  sprang  up  to  succeed  him, 
and  in  time  monasteries  were  built,  to  which  the  youth  of 
England  flocked  for  instruction,  being  freely  taught  and 
entertained  by  the  monks. 

"  From  one  of  these  monasteries  St.  Columba  went 
forth  (about  A.D.  565)  on  a  mission  to  Scotland,  and 
founded  a  school  in  the  Island  of  lona,  afterwards 
called  Icolmkill — i.e.  St.  Columba's  Isle  (I  Columb-kill). 
A  touching  anecdote  relates  that  when  the  Saint  set 
forth,  he  landed  first  on  the  Isle  of  Oronsay,  but  finding 
that  the  Irish  shore  was  there  not  out  of  sight,  he  could 
not  bear  to  stay  within  view  of  his  dear  old  home,  and 
sailing  to  lona  he  mounted  the  highest  point,  whence, 
gazing  back,  he  could  see  Ireland  no  more.  There  he 
resolved  to  stay.  A  heap  of  stones  marks  the  spot,  now 
called  the  Cairn  of  Farewell.  His  monks  were  daring 
men,  and  both  Picts  and  Scots  regarded  them  and  their 
leader  with  great  veneration. 

^  See  Moore's  History  of  Ireland,  and  Maclear's  Meilim'al  Apostles. 


48  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


"  At  this  time  England  was  devastated  by  the  heathen 
Saxons,  who  had  driven  the  British  Christians  into  Wales 
and  Cornwall.  It  was  therefore  most  providential  that  a 
great  active  mission  station  was  planted  in  Scotland. 
The  Saxons  had  many  fine  qualities,  however,  and  good 
laws  of  their  own.  They  seem  to  have  been  seldom 
resisted  except  by  the  half  fabulous  King  Arthur,  who  is 
said  to  have  routed  their  armies  near  Bath  a.d.  520. 
The  Britons  managed  to  retain  wild  Wales,  Somerset, 
Devon,  and  Cornwall,  and  the  Lake  Districts  of  the 
North.  But  they  were  too  cowardly  or  too  prudent  to 
go  forth  as  missionaries  among  the  victors,  and  for  this 
lukewarmness  (if  it  is  not  speaking  too  hardly)  the  curse 
of  Laodicea  seems  to  have  fallen  upon  them.  (Rev.  iii. 
16.)  In  consequence  of  their  holding  back,  the  Saxons 
remained  unconverted,  until  the  good  Gregor\-,  charmed 
with  the  pretty  British  slaves  in  the  market-place  of 
Rome,  would  himself  have  gone  to  preach  to  their  nation 
(not  being  yet  Pope),  but  was  withheld  by  those  who 
knew  his  value  to  Rome.  In  a.D.  596,  however,  he  sent 
Augustine  the  Bishop,  with  forty  comrades,  who,  after 
some  doubt  and  danger  in  France,  landed  in  the  Isle  of 
Thanet  on  the  Kentish  coast. 

"England,  under  the  Saxons,  was  divided  into  seven 
kingdoms,  marked  on  this  map.  The  King  of  Kent  was 
Ethelbert,  who  had  married  Bertha,  a  French  princess 
and  a  Christian.  She  had  brought  a  Bishop  with  her  as 
chaplain,  and  having  repaired  an  old  British  church  at 
Canterbury,  had  named  it  after  St.  Martin  of  Tours. 
Here  she  and  her  followers  worshipped  ;  but  the  King 
and  Court  were  heathen. 

"  Doubtless,  however,  Ethelbert  was  more  ready  to 
hear  Christian  teaching  for  the  sake  of  his  Christian 
wife.    As  it  was,  he  was  a  little  afraid  lest  the  strangers 


MAP  OF  ENGLAND  UNDFK  THE  H  I'.P  TARCH  Y. 


5° 


THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


should  be  magicians,  and  received  them  in  the  open  air, 
which  is  said  to  destroy  witchcraft.  Augustine  and  his 
party  came  on  in  procession  with  a  silver  cross  and 
sacred  banner,  chanting  a  litany.  Ethelbert  was  so 
forcibly  struck  by  Augustine's  preaching  that  he  gave  the 
Christians  leave  to  remain  in  Canterbury,  and  before 
long  was  himself  baptized.  In  the  following  year  Augus- 
tine was  consecrated  Archbishop  by  two  Bishops  of 
France,  and  his  see  was  fixed  at  Canterbury.  The 
gentle  conduct  and  simple  life  of  the  missionaries  won 
all  hearts  ;  they  preached  constantly,  and  could  repeat 
the  greater  part  of  the  Bible  by  heart.  Their  books  were 
few,  and  therefore  memory  had  to  serve  them  instead. 
They  possessed  a  Bible,  a  New  Testament,  a  Psalter, 
an  Exposition  of  the  Epistles  and  Gospels,  a  Book  of 
Martyrs,  and  some  Lives  of  the  Apostles.  In  time 
Augustine  compiled  a  liturgy,  or  Prayer  Book,  for 
England ;  choosing,  by  Gregory's  good  advice,  the  best 
prayers  from  each  of  the  oldest  liturgies  of  the  Christian 
Church." 

"  Did  the  British  Christians  come  out  of  their  hiding- 
places  now,  and  help  Augustine  to  convert  the  Saxons?" 
asked  Joan. 

"No.  They  now  held  back  on  account  of  difference 
of  opinion  between  them  and  the  Italians.  They  kept 
Easter  on  different  days,  and  the  priests  shaved  their 
heads  differently.  As  usual,  the  smaller  the  diversity  the 
greater  the  bitterness.  On  both  points  the  British  Church 
agreed  with  the  Eastern,  i.e.  the  Church  in  Asia.  The 
Eastern  clergy  shaved  the  front  of  the  head,  which  they 
called  the  tonsure  of  St.  Paul  (from  to7ido,  Latin,  to 
shave).  The  Roman  priests  shaved  a  spot  in  the  centre 
of  the  head,  leaving  a  circle  of  hair  to  typify  our  Lord's 
crown  of  thorns,  and  this  they  called  the  coronal,  or 


ARCHBISHOPS  OF  CANTER B URY.  51 


crown  tonsure,  or  the  tonsure  of  St.  Peter.  A  meeting  was 
held  between  the  British  and  Italian  Bishops,  to  try  to 
settle  these  differences,  but  the  former  having  decided  to 
give  way  only  if  Augustine  should  show  them  the  respect 
of  rising  to  meet  them — which  he  did  not— no  settlement 
was  made." 

"Which  of  the  two  was  right,  aunt?" 

"About  Easter  Au;;ustine  was  right,  for  the  world 
should  rejoice  together  concerningour  Lord's  Resurrection, 
and  the  CEcumenical  Council  of  NicEea  (see  p.  28)  had 
fixed  the  day  for  the  Sunday  after  the  first  full  moon  after 
the  2 1st  of  March.*  The  difference  proved  awkward 
sometimes,  as  when,  on  one  occasion,  a  queen  who 
followed  the  Roman  rule,  and  her  husband's  Court  who 
followed  the  British,  were  keeping  Easter  joys  and  Lenten 
fisting  at  one  time.  As  to  the  tonsure,  I  think  both  parties 
were  wrong  to  make  a  matter  of  mere  ceremonial  a  hin- 
drance to  the  spread  of  Christianity. 

"  No  complete  history  of  the  early  English  Church  is 
possible  in  our  conversations.  Here  is  a  list  of  the  Arch- 
bishops of  Canterbury  from  the  time  of  Ethelbert  to  that 
of  William  the  Conqueror,  which  you  may  find  useful  for 
reference  : — 


A.D. 

A.D. 

AiiRustine  . 

597 

Bregwin 

Diinstan 

•  959 

l.aurcntius  . 

Lambert 

764 

Ethelgar 

.  988 

MrllitUS  . 

617 

Athelard 

793 

•  989 

622 

Wulfred  . 

806 

Alfric 

•  993 

Honorius  . 

626 

Theogild 

832 

Alphege 

Adeodatus  . 

654 

Ceolnoth  . 

33= 

.  1013 

Theodore  . 

668 

Athelred  . 

872 

Agelnoth 

Br:thw.ild  . 

692 

Plegmund  . 

889 

Eadsinus 

•  1038 

T.-itwin 

731 

Athelm 

915 

Robert 

Nothelm  . 

735 

Wulfhclm  . 

Stigand  . 

Cuthbcrt  . 

740 

Odo 

934 

•  The  Scottish 

Chnr 

h  admitted  this 

\rraiigemont  into  her  c: 

A.D.  710. 


52  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


And  on  this,  as  on  other  subjects,  I  will  give  a  few  of  the 
most  interesting  facts  that  I  can  light  upon. 

"Look  upon  the  map  at  that  great  country  of  Northum- 
bria.  Its  conversion  came  about  in  a  very  striking  manner. 
Its  prince,  Edwin,  when  verj'  young,  had  been  driven  from 
his  throne  by  a  wicked  uncle,  and  fled  for  safety  to  the 
King  of  Essex.  The  cruel  uncle  offered  large  bribes  to 
this  king  to  deliver  up  his  guest,  and  there  was  danger 
that  he  would  yield.  Poor  Edwin,  seated  on  a  stone  outside 
the  palace  gates,  was  in  momentary  expectation  of  being 
given  up  to  his  enemy,  but  was  too  much  out  of  heart  to 
fly.  It  was  dark.  A  stranger  approaching,  spoke  kindly 
to  him,  and  finally  foretold  that  in  bright  days  to  come 
Edwin  should  be  the  greatest  king  in  Britain.  He  then 
won  from  the  youth  a  promise  that  if  this  should  come  to 
pass  he  would  then  follow  the  advice  his  stranger-friend 
should  give  him.  Then,  laying  his  hand  on  the  prince's 
head,  he  added  :  '  When  this  token  shall  come  to  you 
again,  remember  this  time  and  the  words  that  have  passed 
between  us,  and  delay  not  to  fulfil  your  promise.' 

"Affairs  happened  as  foretold.  Edwin's  host  was  true 
to  him,  and  at  last  Edwin  got  his  throne  again  wth  the 
title  of  Bretwalda,  Lord  of  Britain.  He  then  U.D.  625) 
married  a  Christian  princess  of  Kent,  who  brought  with 
her  Paulinus,  a  good  and  brave  Bishop,  to  be  her  chaplain. 
The  King,  however,  had  not  yet  resolved  to  become  a 
Christian,  when,  one  day,  as  he  sat  alone,  Paulinus 
approaching,  laid  his  hand  on  Edwin's  head  and  asked  if 
he  remembered  the  token.  Following  up  his  advantage,  he 
preached  so  forcibly  that  the  King  speedily  summoned  a 
council,  at  which  he  proposed  the  new  faith  to  his  people. 

"  The  chief  heathen  priest,  speaking  first,  said  he  knew 
there  was  no  truth  in  his  religion  because  the  gods  had 
never  specially  honoured  him,  their  most  devoted  sei-vant 


ST.  AIDAN.  S3 

(about  as  weak  a  reason,  by  the  way,  as  he  could  have 
given).  A  wiser  speaker  added  that  to  them  the  Hfc  of 
man  was  as  mysterious  as  the  flight  of  a  sparrow  through 
a  lighted  hall.  For  a  moment  they  saw  it,  and  it  was 
in  warmth  and  brightness  ;  but  it  came  from  night  and 
fled  out  to  night  again,  where  no  man  knew  its  course. 
'  Wherefore  if  this  new  lore  bring  anything  more  certain 
or  more  profitable,  it  is  fit  that  we  should  follow  it.' 

"All  being  of  one  mind,  the  high  priest  (angry,  you 
see,  against  the  gods  who  had  been  so  ungrateful  to  his 
own  virtues)  begged  leave  to  be  the  first  to  destroy  the 
idols ;  and,  riding  on  a  horse,  bearing  a  sword  and  spear, 
all  which  things  were  forbidden  to  heathen  priests,  he 
rushed  to  the  temple  of  Godmundingham,  'the  house 
protected  by  the  gods,'  now  Market  Weighton  in  York- 
shire, and  hurled  his  spear  at  its  wall.  His  followers  fired 
the  building,  and  abolished  with  it,  for  the  time  at  least, 
idolatry  in  Northumbria. 

"  On  the  death  of  Edwin,  however,  the  kingdom  was 
involved  in  fresh  wars,  and  Christianity  languished. 
When  peace  was  restored,  Edwin's  cousin,  Oswald,  then 
king,  sent  to  Scotland  for  a  Christian  teacher.  Of  the 
teacher  whom  he  procured  I  must  tell  you  something,  for 
he  is  one  of  the  noblest  examples  of  a  Christian  Bishop. 
St.  Aidan  came  from  the  school  of  lona,  a.d.  635,  to 
Lindisfarne  (now  called  Holy  Island),  which  Oswald  gave 
him  for  his  see.  He,  of  course,  followed  the  British 
custom  in  keeping  Easter.  He  had  no  desire  for  wealth, 
and  distributed  to  the  poor  all  that  was  given  to  him. 
He  went  about  on  foot,  and  of  all  he  met  he  asked  if 
they  were  Christians.  If  not,  he  taught  them  ;  otherwise, 
he  confirmed  them  in  the  faith.  His  attendants  studied 
the  Scriptures  or  learned  psalmody  as  they  journeyed. 
When  invited  to  the  King's  table,  he  stayed  at  the  feast 


54  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


but  a  short  time,  and  retired  to  read  or  pray.  He  did 
good  in  many  ways,  more  especially  by  redeeming  slaves 
from  servitude." 

"  Where  do  you  find  these  pretty  stories,  aunt?" 

"  The  earliest  British  historian  is  one  Gildas,  but  the 
most  valuable  record  of  these  times  remains  in  the 
Church  History  of  the  Venerable  Bade.  It  begins  with 
Gregory's  mission,  A.n.  596,  and  is  carried  do\vn  to  Bede's 
time,  viz.,  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century.  His  story 
is  worth  relating. 

"  In  the  seventh  century  lived  one  Benedict  Biscop, 
minister  of  state  to  Oswy,  King  of  Northumbria — the 
very  king  who  disagreed  with  his  queen  about  Easter- 
tide. At  the  age  of  twenly-five  Benedict  left  his  early-won 
honours,  went  to  study  in  Rome  and  France,  returned 
with  valuable  books  and  clever  workmen,  and  built  a 
monastery  at  Monkwearmouth,  and  twelve  years  after- 
wards a  second  at  Jarrow-on-Tyne  (you  see  it  on  the 
map),  which  had  painted  walls  and  glazed  windows — 
these  latter  being  a  novelty  and  a  wonder. 

"  Near  Jarrow,  about  a.d.  673,  Bede  was  bom,  and  at 
the  age  of  seven,  being  left  an  orphan,  was  taken  in 
charge  by  the  good  Abbot  Biscop  at  the  monastery  of 
Wearmouth,  where  by  him  and  his  successor  Bede  was 
carefully  educated  for  twelve  years.  He  was  then  ordained 
deacon,  but  did  not  become  a  priest  till  he  was  thirty  years 
of  age.  His  fame  as  a  man  of  learning  seems  to  have 
spread  by  this  time ;  for  it  is  said  that  Pope  Sergius  asked 
that  he  might  be  sent  to  Rome  to  lend  aid  on  certain 
points.  He  did  not  go,  however,  but  remained  at  Jarrow, 
where  he  had  now  taken  up  his  abode,  improving  the 
singing  there  and  writing  his  great  Ecclesiastical  History 
of  the  English  Nation,  and  other  works. 

"At  the  age  of  sixty-two,  on  the  eve  of  Ascension  Day, 


BEDE. 


55 


he  died  a  holy  death,  comforting  himself  with  thoughts 
of  God.    Among  his  last  words  were  some  fine  Saxon 

lines  .  piignm  soul  go  forth 

On  its  journey  far  and  lone, 
Who  is  he  that  yet  on  earth 
All  his  needful  part  hath  done  f 

"  'Who  foreweighs  the  joy  or  scathe 
That  his  parted  ghost  shall  know. 
Endless,  when  the  day  of  death 
Seals  his  doom  for  weal  or  woe?'* 

"  He  was  dictating,  on  his  death-bed,  the  final  chapter 
of  his  last  book,  a  translation  of  St.  John's  Gospel  into 
the  Saxon  language,  and  had  done  all  but  one  chapter, 
when  he  broke  off  to  bequeath  to  his  friends  the  monks 
his  small  possessions.  '  I  have,'  said  he  to  his  attendant, 
'in  my  little  private  chest,  some  few  valuables,  some 
pepper,  frankincense,  and  a  few  scarfs  ;  run  speedily  and 
bring  the  priests  of  our  monastery  to  me,  that  I  may 
distribute  to  them  such  little  gifts  as  God  has  put  it  in 
my  power  to  give.'  In  the  evening  he  was  reminded  that 
his  translation  was  yet  incomplete  ;  he  gave  the  final 
words.  '  It  is  now  finished,'  said  the  writer.  '  You  say 
well,'  rephed  Bede  ;  '  it  is  finished  !  Support  my  head 
between  thy  hands.  I  wish  to  sit  opposite  the  place  in 
which  I  used  to  pray,  and  where,  now  sitting,  I  may 
still  call  upon  my  Father.'  Very  soon  after  this  he  died, 
breathing  the  words,  '  Glory  be  to  the  Father,  and  to  the 
Son,  and  to  the  Holy  Ghost.'" 

Mrs.  Askell  and  her  niece  were  silent  for  a  little  while. 
There  is  a  holiness  about  the  story  of  a  Christian  death- 
bed which  makes  one  feel  quiet,,  as  if  one  were  in  a 
church. 

Presently  Joan  asked,  "  Were  the  churches  still  built  of 
wood  ? " 

*  Chukton's  History  oj  thi:  Early  EiLgiish  Chzirch,  p.  147. 


56  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


"  No,  they  were  of  stone,  and  rather  handsome,  though 
we  have  few  specimens  of  Saxon  building  left ;  and  there 
was  good  music  in  them. 

"  Please  consult  your  list  of  Archbishops.  *  I  will  now 
draw  your  attention  to  Theodore,  who  became  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury  in  668.  Our  interest  is  at  once  enlisted  for 
him,  when  we  hear  that  he  was  born  in  '  Tarsus,  a  city  of 
Cilicia,'  where  St.  Paul  was  also  born.  He  it  was  who 
first  provided  England  with  parish  churches  and  parish 
priests.  Up  to  his  time  the  clergy  were  clustered  round  a 
Bishop,  or  in  a  monastery,  and  Theodore  wisely  saw  how 
much  better  it  would  be  for  each  village  to  have  its  own 
church,  and  a  pastor  to  whom  the  people  might  always 
go  for  advice.  This  parish  system  was  already  in  use  in 
the  Eastern  Church,  whence  Theodore  came.  This  is  the 
way  in  which  he  introduced  it  here :  first  the  princes,  and 
afterwards  the  thanes  and  nobles,  had  been  accustomed 
to  appoint  chaplains  to  their  households :  Theodore  now 
persuaded  as  many  of  them  as  he  could  to  build  churches 
on  their  estates,  and  to  place  their  chaplain  there  as 
parish  priest,  endowed  with  a  sufficient  income.  We 
must  not  forget  the  gratitude  we  owe  to  Archbishop 
Theodore  for  this  excellent  system,  by  far  the  best  of  all 
systems  for  solidifying  and  maintaining  Christianity  in 
a  country. 

"The  next  name  on  the  list  which  you  will  recollect  is 
probably  that  of  Dunstan." 

"Was  he  not  a  very  bad  and  troublesome  man.-"' 
"  On  the  contrary,  I  believe  him  to  have  been  sincerely 
good.  In  this  nice  little  volume,  '  Churton's  Clmrch 
History^  you  will  find  a  well-sifted  account  of  Dunstan, 
which  I  advise  you  to  refer  to  whenever  you  are  reading 
or  hearing  anything  against  him. 

*  See  page  51. 


ST.  ALPHEGE. 


57 


"The  parish  priests  settled  by  Archbishop  Theodore 
were  generally  married  men.  They  were  called  secular 
priests,  living  'in  the  world.'  The  monks  or  regulars— 
i.e.  living  in  monasteries  according  to  rule — held  it  wrong 
for  men  devoted  to  God's  service  to  many.  Dunstan  (of 
whose  legendary  adventures  at  Glastonbury,  where  he 
studied  in  the  great  monastic  school,  you  must  have  read) 
fell  deeply  in  love  with  a  young  lady  of  the  Court,  and 
consulted  a  holy  kinsman  of  his  on  the  subject.  He  was 
earnestly  advised  to  resist  his  desires,  and,  acting  on  this 
advice,  embraced  a  monastic  life  with  great  fervour. 
Although  we  may  regret  the  false  conscience  thus  forced 
upon  him,  we  must  honour  his  noble  self-denial  and  sense 
of  duty,  and  be  sure  that  Christ  fulfilled  to  him  His  pro- 
mise to  those  who  forsake  their  friends  for  His  sake.  (St. 
Matt.  xix.  29.) 

"St.  Alphege  (a.D.  1009)  must  not  pass  unnoticed. 
He  was  a  martyr.  In  his  time  the  Danes  were  sorely 
molesting  the  English,  and  (a.d.  ion)  taking  Canterbury, 
they  carried  off  Alphege  as  a  prisoner.  In  the  following 
spring  there  was  a  conference  between  Danes  and  English, 
when  the  former  offered  to  release  the  Archbishop  for  a 
large  ransom  ;  but  he,  knowing  it  could  only  be  raised 
by  heavy  taxes,  stedfastly  refused  to  be  ransomed,  where- 
upon the  enraged  Danes  pelted  him  with  the  huge  bones 
remaining  from  their  rude  feast,  till  he  fell  in  an  agony  of 
pain,  but  not  dead.  There  was  standing  by  a  Dane  whom 
Alphege  had  baptized  and  confirmed  on  the  preceding 
day.  He  knew  not  how  to  assist  his  spiritual  father,  but 
he  was  moved  with  feelings  of  pity  and  compassion.  It 
is  clear  that  he  resolved  in  his  mind  what  step  he  would 
take  if  his  favourite  war-horse  were  mortally  wounded  ; 
and,  knowing  that  in  such  a  case  he  would  put  him  out 
of  his  pain,  he  lifted  up  his  battle-axe,  and,  as  an  act  of 


S8  THE  EARLY  ENGLISH  CHURCH. 


Christian  charity,  clave  in  twain  the  skull  of  Alphege, 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury."* 

"  The  Danes  were  speedily  converted  by  the  wise  policy 
of  King  Alfred,t  and  then  the  martyi-'s  body  was  borne  to 
burial  in  the  barge  of  a  Danish  king,  'nobly  painted  and 
adorned  with  gold.' 

"When  the  wise  Danish  Canute  was  dead,  and  his 
weak  sons  were  dead  too,  the  Saxons  sent  for  Edward, 
called  the  Confessor,  to  be  their  king,  a.D.  1042.  He 
was  the  son  of  the  Saxon  King  Ethelred,  who  had  fled 
from  the  Danes  to  his  brother-in-law,  Richard  Duke  of 
NoiTnandy.  Edward,  having  been  brought  up  there,  had 
acquired  foreign  habits,  speaking  French,  and  looking  on 
English  ways  as  barbarous.  He  was,  however,  a  con- 
scientious man,  and  the  Church  had  rest  during  the 
twenty-four  years  of  his  reign ;  but  in  this  reign  the 
Anglo-Saxon  Church  changed  its  character.  Edward 
gave  many  bishoprics  to  Frenchmen,  and  had  a  habit  of 
placing  English  priories  in  subjection  to  foreign  abbeys  ; 
St.  Michael's  Mount  in  Cornwall,  for  instance,  was  made 
dependent  on  the  abbey  of  St.  Michael's  Mount  on  the 
French  coast.  This  paved  the  way  for  the  loss  of  inde- 
pendence which  reached  a  sad  climax  about  the  time  of 
John,  as  you  read  in  all  English  histories. 

"  Stigand  was  the  last  Anglo-Saxon  Archbishop.  When 
William  the  Conqueror  became  King  of  England  (partly 
because  Edward  had  left  the  Crown  to  him  by  will,  but 
chiefly  because  he  was  stronger  than  those  who  opposed 
him),  he  was  at  first  very  respectful  to  the  prelate  ;  but 
Stigand,  having  anointed  as  king  the  young  Saxon  prince, 
Edgar  Athehng,  encouraged  a  resistance  made  to  William 
in  the  Island  of  Ely,  among  the  fens,  whither  he  retreated 

*  Hook's  Arclihiskoffs  of  Canterbury^  vol.  i.  p.  470. 
\  See  Hughes's  Kiti^  Alfred.  Macmillaii. 


STIGAND. 


59 


with  others  to  the  fine  monastery  of  Crowland,  built  on 
piles  driven  deep  into  the  marsh.  Stigand  was  a  rich 
man,  and  now  was  lavish  with  his  gold  and  silver ;  he 
had  also  coiners  with  him,  and,  as  primate,  the  right  to 
coin  money,  so  that  there  was  small  fear  of  poverty  for  • 
the  little  troop.  They  were  headed  by  the  great  Hereward, 
whom  Kingsley  calls  the  '  Last  of  the  English,'  as  you 
shall  read  in  his  story.  But  at  length  the  patriots  were 
betrayed  to  the  Normans,  and  Stigand  was  thrown  into 
prison  at  Winchester.  Here  he  lingered  many  years, 
vainly  hoping  for  some  hero  to  arise  and  deliver  his 
country,  and  to  the  last  refusing  to  betray  the  hiding- 
place  of  his  treasures,  which  he  hoped  might  still  be  of 
use  to  some  Saxon  prince.  But  no  hero  came ;  it  was 
not  God's  will ;  and  although  it  must  have  seemed  hard 
to  the  Anglo-Saxons  that  their  beautiful  home  should  be 
ruled  by  a  stranger,  yet  William  was  a  great  man,  and 
governed  not  amiss.  So  poor  Stigand  died  broken-hearted, 
and  the  Normans  found  his  treasures  after  all." 


CHAPTER  V, 


(atfie  jDKonaHtit  <0rbertf. 

Though  the  mills  of  God  grind  shnvly, 

Yet  tJtey  grind  exceeding  small; 
Though  with  patience  He  stands  "waiting. 
With  exactness  grijids  He  all." 

"YTARIOUS  circumstances  prevented  the  lessons  from 
being  resumed  until  an  interval  of  nearly  a  month 
had  elapsed,  and  summer  was  replacing  the  sweet 
but  treacherous  spring.  Then,  one  morning.  Canon 
Gibson's  chaise  drove  up  to  Mrs.  Askell's  door,  with  the 
kind  Canon  inside,  and  Joan  and  her  aunt  got  in.  They 
ivere  to  undertake  a  little  journey  that  morning,  for  the 
purpose  of  spending  a  few  hours  among  some  beautiful 
ruins  of  which  Joan  had  often  heard.  She  had  taken 
only  short  drives  hitherto  since  her  illness,  and  was 
already  tired  of  the  environs  of  Banninster.  Thus  the 
fresh  air  and  scenes  of  the  present  trip  were  very  enchant- 
ing to  her.  The  carriage  passed  down  bowery  lanes,  and 
over  wide  stretches  of  land  bright  with  yellow  gorse. 
That  is  always  a  glorious  sight,  though  few  of  us  English 
own  it  with  the  gratitude  of  Linnaus,  the  Swedish  botanist, 
who,  on  his  first  view  of  an  English  common  covered  with 
ftuze  in  blossom,  sank  on  his  knees  and  thanked  God  that 
He  had  let  him  live  to  see  it.  Later  in  the  year,  Mrs. 
Askell  said,  these  wastes  were  still  more  rich  with  the 
exquisite  bloom  of  purple  heather. 

At  last  they  reached  the  bed  of  a  river,  and  drove  along 


THE  ABBEY. 


6i 


beside  it— the  bed  only,  for  the  stream  itself  seemed 
shrunken  to  a  thread,  leaving  a  wide  and  ugly  margin  of 
mud  sown  with  knots  of  rushes.  Joan  exclaimed  in  sur- 
prise, for  there  had  been  no  drought ;  but  it  was  explained 
that  this  was  a  tidal  river,  and  that  presently,  if  they 
stayed  long  enough,  she  would  see  it  in  full  flow.  At  last 
the  village  appeared  at  whose  farther  extremity  they  were 
to  find  the  ruins.  They  left  the  carriage  at  the  inn,  and 
turned  on  foot  into  a  field,  on  the  other  side  of  which 
appeared  what  seemed  to  be  an  old  church  without  a 
tower,  and  around  it  a  mass  of  broken  buildings. 

"  Is  that  the  village  church?"  asked  Joan. 

"  That  is  our  abbey,"  answered  Mr.  Gibson ;  and  pre- 
sently they  reached  the  door.  A  little  old  man,  who  had 
accompanied  them  from  the  village,  unlocked  and  let 
them  in.  The  interior  was  plain  and  bare,  with  heavy 
walls,  windows  high  up,  no  east  window,  no  sign  of  an 
altar,  and  yet  there  was  what  seemed  to  be  a  handsome 
pulpit  in  the  middle  of  one  side,  placed  against  the  wall, 
and  approached  by  a  small  stair  and  gallery  behind  a 
little  row  of  pillars  in  the  wall  itself.  There  were  also 
various  mural  tablets,  some  of  which,  being  quaint  and 
odd,  the  old  man  was  anxious  to  present  to  their  admira- 
tion. 

"  What  a  strange  church  !"  cried  Joan. 

"It  is  not,  in  fact,  a  church  at  all,"  answered  Mr. 
Gibson,  "  although  at  one  time  it  was  used  as  such.  It 
was  originally  the  refectory,  or  dining-hall,  of  the  religious 
order  for  whom  this  place  was  built.  I  imagine  them  here 
at  their  mid-day  meal,  the  long  rows  of  cowled,  grave 
brethren  at  their  simple  food,  and  in  that  pulpit  (which, 
by  the  way,  is  noted  for  its  beautiful  carving)  one  of  their 
number  reading  aloud  a  passage  from  the  Bible,  or  some 
work  of  the  Fathers." 


62 


Mr.  Gibson  pointed  out  some  architectural  peculiarities, 
and  then  they  left  the  refectory,  dismissing  their  old  at- 
tendant with  a  fee,  and  felt  that  they  might  wander  at 
liberty  through  the  open  and  more  ruinous  paths. 

They  found  themselves  in  an  enctosed  square,  carpeted 
with  grass,  and  having  on  two  sides  a  row  of  arches. 
These,  Mr.  Gibson  said,  were  the  remains  of  the  cloisters 
— a  covered  walk  where  the  brethren  could  read  or  medi- 
tate. The  other  two  sides  were  occupied  with  buildings 
in  such  fair  preservation  that  on  one  side  two  stories  even 
remained,  and  a  rude  staircase  by  which  our  party  could 
ascend  to  the  upper  floor.  Here  they  found  a  long  room, 
and,  at  the  farther  end,  a  large,  bright,  airy  chamber  with 
four  windows.  The  floor  was  weak  in  many  parts,  and 
bits  of  carved  work  and  much  dust  were  all  about ;  but 
still  it  seemed  such  a  chamber  as  that  in  which  the  Pilgrim 
Christian  lay,  the  name  of  which  was  Peace,  and  which 
looked  towards  the  sun-rising. 

"  That  room  by  which  we  have  passed  was  the  dormi- 
tory or  sleeping -room,"  said  Mr.  Gibson,  "and  this  was 
the  hospital,  where  the  brethren  nursed  their  own  sick  or 
the  poor  and  strangers  who  needed  such  care.  Below 
were  the  kitchen  and  other  offices." 

Joan  made  her  way  to  a  little  window,  in  which  still 
remained  the  upright  and  cross  bars  (the  muUion  and  the 
transom,  Mr.  Gibson  called  them),  and  where,  in  conse- 
quence of  their  better  condition,  she  could  more  easily 
dream  herself  back  to  the  old  time  when  the  place  was 
full  of  tranquil  life.  Beneath  her  lay  a  lacy  entanglement 
of  foliage,  the  giaccful  bending  mountain-ash  and  the 
sturdier  trees  waving  their  branches  in  a  gentle  wind. 
The  birds  sang  and  the  rooks  gave  their  sleepy  cawing  ; 
the  warm,  soft  sunshine  bathed  all  in  golden  calm  ;  and 
Joan  felt  for  a  few  of  those  long  sweet  moments  which 


THE  CHAPEL. 


63 


mark  the  time  on  the  dial  of  our  lives  that  her  spirit  had 
wings,  and  could  mount  up  and  chant  its  little  hymn  of 
love  with  the  lark  trilling  high  above  that  place. 

Then  she  came  down  to  earth  again,  and  her  aunt 
smiled,  but  kindly,  at  her  exclamation,  "  How  I  should 
love  to  have  lived  liere  in  the  old  times !" 

"  You  could  not  have  done  that,  you  know,  because  no 
women  were  admitted,"  answered  prosaic  Mr.  Gibson  ; 
and  so  they  went  on  to  that  part  of  the  ground  where  lay 
clearly  defined  on  the  grass  the  cross-shaped  outline  of 
the  chapel.  The  east  end,  with  a  slight  elevation  mark- 
ing the  position  of  the  altar,  was  still  in  some  sort  left. 
Joan  observed  that  her  aunt  walked  straight  up  to  that 
elevation,  and  stood  before  it  for  a  n^inute  with  bent  head 
and  reverent  mien,  as  if  she  were  praying. 

Canon  Gibson,  in  his  pleasant  way,  which  made  infor- 
mation seem  like  pastime,  went  round,  pointing  out  to  Joan 
the  position  of  transepts,  nave,  aisles,  &c.,  circumstances 
which  she  better  understood  when,  some  time  later,  she 
had  had  her  lesson  on  church  architecture. 

The  three  then  sat  down  on  some  fallen  masonry  to 
eat  the  luncheon  they  had  brought  with  them. 

"And  now,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "if  it  is  not  being  too 
useful  on  a  holiday,  I  should  like  to  resume  our  Church 
lessons  while  we  have  the  benefit  of  Mr.  Gibson's  pre- 
sence, and  I  would  ask  him  to  tell  my  little  niece  some- 
thing about  the  good  people  who  once  dwelt  here  and  in 
such  places  as  these." 

Joan  joined  her  entreaties,  and  the  Canon  was  not 
unwilling. 

"  When  one  is  in  a  sweet  spot  such  as  this,"  he  observed, 
"one  feels  so  very  sorry  for  the  poor  monks  who  were 
turned  out  of  their  homes,  and  so  angry  with  King  Henry 
for  countenancing  the  dissolution." 


64 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


"What  was  the  dissolution?"  asked  Joan. 

"The  dissohition  of  the  monasteries  had,  to  Heniy 
VIII.'s  mind,  a  very  simple  meaning.  He  drove  away 
the  monks  and  nuns  to  live  or  die  as  they  could,  and 
gave  away  the  consecrated  lands  and  houses  to  his  own 
favourites." 

"But  I  suppose  he  was  right  to  destroy  the  monas- 
teries ;  for  they  were  very  wcked  places,  were  they  not  ?" 

"  It  seems  rather  hard  and  young  to  call  houses  dedi- 
cated to  God  '  very  wicked  places/  does  it  not  ?"  replied 
the  Canon,  smiling. 

"  1  think  you  will  best  give  Joan  her  answer  by  favouring 
us  with  a  slight  history  of  monasticism,"  said  Mrs.  Askell, 
"  if  you  will  be  so  kind." 

"  A  pretty  long  subject  for  a  holiday,"  said  Mr.  Gibson  ; 
"but  I  will  do  my  best  for  the  space  of  a  short  lecture. 
In  the  first  place  " 

"Please,  what  does  monasticism  mean?"  interrupted 
Joan. 

"  It  means  the  system  under  which  the  monks  lived — 
from  7nonos,  Greek  for  alone.  Monasticism  is  older  than 
Christianity.  It  arose  in  the  East,  in  times  of  which  it 
would  be  difficult  to  name  the  beginning,  and  was  the 
result  of  the  feeling  which  seems  always  to  haunt  men 
when  they  begin  to  know  good  from  evil,  that  in  order  to 
find  the  good  they  must  leave  the  world,  and  not  only 
that,  but  in  every  other  way  also  kill  and  crush  all  desires 
of  the  flesh,  all  longing  for  what  is  pleasant  to  wear,  or 
eat,  or  feel.  From  this  belief  sprang  the  self-tortures  of 
all  young  religious  societies. 

"  There  was  a  sect  of  the  Jews  called  Essencs,  who 
retired  to  lonely  places  for  a  life  of  tranquil  devotion  and 
innocent  cultivation  of  the  soil.  Their  simple  mode  of 
living  reminds  us  of  that  led  by  St.  John  the  Baptist. 


^7-.  BENEDICT. 


65 


There  was  also  another  similar  society  called  the  Thera- 
peutcB,  or  Healers,  a  name  afterwards  assumed  by  Chris- 
tian ascetics.  The  early  bearers  of  that  name  probably 
won  it  from  their  knowledge  of  healing  herbs  acquired 
by  a  life  in  the  wilderness.  In  the  second  century 
Christians  began  to  withdraw  in  the  same  manner  from 
active  life  to  an  existence  of  retirement  and  prayer.  The 
desert  was  the  only  place  of  safety  in  those  persecuting 
days.  Some  religious  persons  lived  in  rigid  solitude ;  these 
were  called  Ei-cmites,  or  Hermits.  St.  Anthony  was  the 
great  example  of  this  system.  IVIrs.  Jameson  gives  a 
full  account  of  him  in  her  Sacred  and  Legendary  Art. 
Others  banded  together  in  companies,  and  had  all  things 
in  common  ;  these  were  known  as  Canobites. 

"When  persecution  ceased,  inonachism  (or  the  monastic 
life)  took  a  clearer  form,  and  was  guided  by  distinct  laws. 
Having  thus  arisen  in  the  East,  where  meditation  was 
the  chief  aim  of  the  asc<  tics,  the  system  was  introduced 
by  the  great  Athanasius  into  the  West  of  Europe,  and 
at  once  took  a  form  of  greater  activity.  In  the  West 
monachism  owes  its  strength  chiefly  to  St.  Benedict. 
His  history  is  very  strange  and  interesting.  He  was 
born  (about  a.d.  480)  in  the  province  of  Spoleto,  in  Italy, 
and  was  sent  to  school  at  Rome.  There  he  was  seized 
with  a  great  horror  of  the  vice  of  the  city,  and  fled,  with 
only  his  old  nurse  for  a  companion,  to  be  alone  with  God. 
He  dwelt  for  three  years  alone  in  a  wild  cavern,  which  is 
still  to  be  seen  'high  on  the  crest  of  a  toppling  rock, 
with  the  Arno  roaring  beneath  in  a  deep  ravine  clothed 
with  the  densest  forest,  and  looking  on  another  wild 
precipitous  crag.'*  Here  he  was  secretly  fed  by  a  friendly 
monk,  who  saved  food  for  him  from  his  own  small  allow- 

^  Milman's  Latin  Christianity,  vol.  i.  p.  G.  This  caveni  is  near 
Siibiaco. 

F 


66 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


ance,  and  let  it  down  to  the  cavern  by  a  rope.  At  last 
his  hiding-place  became  known,  and  he  did  much  good 
by  preaching  to  the  rude  shepherds  in  the  district ;  and 
at  length  twelve  monasteries,  each  containing  twelve 
monks,  arose  under  his  rule.  To  these  houses,  supported 
by  rich  admirers,  young  nobles  were  sometimes  sent  for 
education. 

"After  some  time  Benedict  quitted  the  spot  where  he 
had  spent  his  youth,  for  the  romantic  site  of  Monte 
Casino,  near  Aquino,  in  South  Italy,  where  was  at  that 
time  a  temple  to  Apollo.  In  its  stead,  St.  Benedict  built 
a  great  monastery,  whence  he  issued  his  celebrated  rule, 
followed  by  the  many  thousands  of  Benedictine  monks 
who  have  since  arisen.  Its  three  great  commands  were 
silence,  humility,  and  obedience.  But  we  must  leave  St. 
Benedict  now.  It  will  do  you  good,  Joan,  to  search  out 
more  of  his  history  for  yourself. 

"  One  St.  Germanus,  of  whom  you  have  probably  never 
heard,  introduced  monachism  into  Wales. 

"Joan  has  heard  something  of  St.  Germanus,"  put  in 
Mrs.  Askell.  "  He  was  one  of  the  two  priests  sent  before 
St.  Patrick,  to  oppose  the  false  teaching  of  the  heretic 
Pelagius.    Do  you  remember  ?  " 

Joan  said  she  thought  she  did,  and  Mr.  Gibson  con- 
tinued : 

"  St.  Patrick  himself  introduced  it  into  Ireland ;  soon 
after,  lona  was  founded  by  St.  Columba,  and  thence 
Scottish  monks  went  forth  establishing  houses  of  prayer 
as  far  south  as  Sussex.  An  Irish  missionary  of  the  time 
of  Augustine,  St.  Columbanus,  founded  monasteries  even 
in  France,  Switzerland,  and  Italy,  and  one  fine  speech  of 
his  shows  the  kind  of  man  he  was.  When  the  King  of 
France  off  ered  him  large  possessions  if  he  would  remain 
in  that  country,  Columbanus  replied,  'We  who  have  for- 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


67 


saken  our  own  that,  according  to  the  commandment  of 
the  Gospel,  we  might  follow  the  Lord,  ought  not  to 
embrace  other  men's  riches,  lest  peradventure  we  should 
prove  transgressors  of  the  Divine  commandment.'  You 
have  not  read  or  heard  much  concerning  these  early 
monasteries,  perhaps,  Joan?" 

"Very  little,"  answered  Joan;  "but  I  have  heard  of 
one  at  Jarrow,  where  Bede  lived." 

"  Did  that  seem  to  you  a  '  very  wicked  place'  ?" 

"  Oh,  no  !    But  I  thought  it  was  an  exception." 

"  On  the  contrary,  we  may  regard  the  religious  estab- 
lishments of  this  early  date  as  the  treasure-houses  of 
godliness,  learning,  and  of  all  conscious,  active  life  for 
God.  There  was  no  other  home  for  them  in  those  rough, 
wild,  half-barbarous  times,  when  even  nobles  could  not 
write  their  names,  and  a  man's  life  was  thought  as  little 
worth  as  a  beast's.  They  were  no  places  of  idleness.  At 
the  monastery  of  Wcarmouth,  near  Jarrow,  when  Biscop 
the  Abbot  went  on  a  journey  on  one  occasion,  we  learn 
that  he  entrusted  the  charge  of  the  house  to  a  young 
nobleman,  his  nephew,  who,  with  the  other  monks,  used  to 
thrash  the  corn,  milk  the  cows, and  work  in  the  mill,  garden, 
and  kitchen,  besides  the  daily  tasks  of  study  and  prayer. 

"  The  monastic  system  underwent  three  reformations  in 
this  country  before  it  was  firmly  established.  Previous  to 
the  first  reformation,  there  appeared  to  be  scarcely  any 
definite  rule  of  monastic  discipline,  since  each  monastery 
adopted  its  own,  and  the  irregularities  which  hence  arose 
having  drawn  the  attention  of  the  hierarchy  to  tliese 
institutions,  a  counsel  was  held  at  Cloveshoo,  a.d.  747,  by 
direction  of  the  Archbishop  Cuthbert,  for  the  purpose  of 
investigating  their  regulations.  In  this  council,  several 
alterations  were  effected  in  the  rules,  as  well  as  in  the  dress 
of  monastics.  The  second  reformation  was  accomplished 


68 


by  Dunstan,  at  the  council  which  met  at  Winchester  a.d. 
965,  during  the  reign  of  Edgar  :  and  the  third  took  place 
under  the  direction  of  Lanfranc  (the  first  Archbishop 
appointed  by  William  the  Conqueror),  who,  in  the  council 
held  at  London,  A.D.  1075,  carried  into  effect  some  of 
those  regulations  which  had  been  determined  upon  during 
the  reign  of  Edgar,  but  which  the  circumstances  of  the 
times  had  kept  in  abeyance."  * 

"Were  the  monks  all  priests.'"  asked  Joan. 

"  By  no  means  :  they  were  mostly  laymen,  but  had  one 
or  two  priests  in  every  community.  They  met  seven  times 
a  day  for  a  short  prayer  and  hjniin  ;  at  daybreak,  at  nine 
in  the  morning,  noon,  three  and  six  in  the  afternoon,  at 
nine  in  the  evening,  and  at  midni:^fht.  They  wore  such  a 
dress  at  night  as  would  permit  them  speedily  to  rise  for 
the  short  service. 

"  These  seven  canonical  hours  of  service  were  known 
as  (i)  Matins,  (2)  Prime,  (3)  Tierce,  (4)  Sext,  (5)  Nones, 
(6)  Vespers,  and  (7)  Compline.  Matins  included  another 
service  called  Lauds.  An  old  writer  named  Durandus 
wrote  some  lines,  a  translation  of  which  may  help  you  to 
remember  the  meaning  and  origin  of  these  hours — 

*'*At  Matins  bound,  at  Prime  reviled,  condemned  to  death  at  Tierce, 
Nailed  to  the  Cross  at  Sext,  at  Nones  His  blessed  side  they  pierce  ; 
They  take  Him  down  at  Vesper-tide,  in  crravc  at  Compline  lay. 
Who  thenceforth  bids  His  Church  observe  her  sevenfold  hours  alway.' 

"  It  is  easy  for  us  nowadays  to  joke  about  the  monks' 
good  living  and  pleasant  sins,  for  all  which  their  prayers 
were  to  atone.  I  always  remember  on  such  occasions 
our  Lord's  words  :  '  Let  him  that  is  without  sin  among 
you  first  cast  a  stone.'  We  commit  pleasant  sins  in 
plenty  ;  the  difference  between  us  and  the  monks  is  that 
we  omit  the  constant  prayer.  But,  indeed,  the  monks  of 
those  early  days  at  any  rate  led  by  no  means  easy  lives. 

*  "  Fox's  English  Moiiasterus,'^  ch-  x. 


ILL  UMINA  TION.  69 


They  used  to  write  much,  copying  the  Gospels,  Psalms, 
and  service-books,  which  could  be  multiplied  in  no  other 
way  before  printing  was  invented.  These  books  were 
also  beautifully  illuminated  by  their  writers." 

Here  Mrs.  Askell  slyly  said  :  "  I  had  a  design  on  you 
before  I  came,  and  foresaw  that  a  lecture  on  monks 
would  produce  a  remark  on  illumination,  so  I  put  my 
only  antique  specimen  into  my  bag  to  illustrate  the 
subject  to  Joan." 

She  drew  out  a  small  missal,  written  on  vellum,  in  old 
black-letter  characters,  with  the  initial  letters  bright  with 
colours  finely  worked,  and  glowing  with  burnished  gold. 
Out  of  one  great  O  peeped  a  little  cherub  so  beautifully 
painted  that  Joan  clapped  her  hands  over  him. 

"Did  a  real  old  monk  do  that  darling  little  fellow?" 
she  exclaimed. 

"No  doubt,"  answered  her  aunt,  "spending  many 
loving  thoughts  upon  him,  like  the  Friar  Pacificus  whom 
Longfellow  so  prettily  pourtrays,  glorying  in  his  work. 
How  go  the  lines  ? 

*' '  There  now,  is  an  initial  letter  ! 

King  R^nc  liimself  never  made  a  better  ! 

Finished  down  to  the  leaf  and  the  snail, 

Down  to  tlie  eyes  on  the  peacock's  tail ! 

And  now,  as  I  turn  the  volume  over, 

And  see  what  lies  between  cover  and  covar, 

What  treasures  of  art  these  pages  hold, 

All  ablaze  with  crimson  and  gold, 

God  forgive  ine !  I  seem  to  feel 

A  certain  satisfaction  Meal 

Into  my  heart  and  into  my  brain. 

As  if  my  talent  had  nut  lain 

Wrapped  in  a  napkin,  and  all  in  vain. 

Ves,  I  might  almost  say  to  the  Lord  : 

"  Here  is  a  copy  of  Thy  Word, 

Written  out  with  much  toil  and  pain. 

Take  it,  O  Lord  :  and  let  it  be 

As  something  I  have  done  for  Theel'"* 

♦  Tlu  Golden  Legetid. 


70 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


"  One  feels  it  was  a  good  Providence  which  led  men  to 
provide  such  tranquil  retreats  and  useful,  simple,  holy 
occupations  for  the  quiet  souls  who  would  else  have  been 
trampled  out  in  the  fierce  rush  of  those  times,  when 
'eveiy  man's  hand  was  against  every  man.'" 

"You  remember  another  use  of  monasteries,"  resumed 
the  Canon.    "  They  were  the  schools  of  that  day."* 

"  Yes  ;  Joan  has  heard  how  young  nobles  were  freely 
instructed  in  St.  Patrick's  Irish  schools,  and  how  Bede 
was  brought  up  to  such  good  purpose." 

"  And  furtlier,  that  they  were  places  of  refuge.  This 
was  in  those  turbulent  times  one  of  the  chief  advantages 
accorded  by  Royal  Charter  to  certain  religious  houses 
It  was  considered  a  terrible  sin  to  molest  a  fugitive  in  any 
of  these  precincts.  This  very  spot  where  we  now  are 
was  the  refuge  of  that  poor,  brave,  miserable  vixen,  Mar- 
garet of  Anjou,  when  once  flying  from  her  foes." 

"  IVIy  resources  are  not  exhausted  yet,"  said  Mrs.  Askell, 
smiling  ;  "  for,  with  what  you  must  own  to  be  skilful  fore- 
sight, I  have  also  brought  that  number  of  Mr.  Charles 
Kingslcy's  Hcreward  which  describes  the  calm  of  Crow- 
land  as  compared  with  the  wild  turmoil  of  the  outer 
world." 

Being  rctiucsted  to  read  it,  Mrs.  Askell  went  on  :  "I 
will  just  explain,  for  Joan's  behoof,  that  William  the 
Norman  is  now  in  the  land,  and  that  the  Anglo-Saxons 
arc  fierce  a-ainst  him.  Hereward,  the  English  patriot, 
comes  back  from  an  exile  over  seas,  finds  Nonnans  in 
his  home,  his  younger  brother's  head  stuck  insultingly 
upon  the  gable  spike  of  the  hall,  and  his  mother,  the 
famous  Lady  Godiva  of  Coventrj',  weeping  over  her 

The  neighbours  of  monnvtcric^  were  generally  allowed  to  send  their 
children  to  the  schools,  where  ihej*  learned  (free)  grammar  and  Church 
music,  though  the  schools  were  really  for  the  little  monks  or  children  devoted 
by  their  parents  to  monkhood. 


CROWLAND. 


child's  body.  He  avenges  her  wrongs  by  a  deadly 
slaughter  of  the  Frenchmen  ;  then  leaves  the  place  well 
guarded,  promising  to  return  soon.  And  whenever  he 
came  back,  he  would  set  a  light  to  three  farms  that  stood 
upon  a  hill,  whence  they  could  be  seen  far  and  wide  over 
the  Bruneswold  and  over  all  the  fen. 

" '  Then  they  went  down  to  the  water,  and  took  barge 
and  laid  the  corpse  of  his  brother  therein,  and  Godiva 
and  Hereward  sat  at  the  dead  lad's  head  ;  and  tliey  rowed 
away  for  Crowland,  by  many  a  mere  and  many  an  ea : 
through  narrow  reaches  of  clear  brown  glassy  water  ; 
between  the  dark-green  alders  ;  between  the  pale-green 
reeds,  and  then  out  into  the  broad  lagoons,  where  hung, 
motionless,  high  over  head,  hawk  beyond  hawk,  buzzard 
beyond  buzzard,  kite  beyond  kite,  as  far  as  eye  could 
see.  Into  the  air,  as  they  rowed  on,  whirred  up  the  great 
skeins  of  wild  fowl  innumerable,  with  a  cry  as  of  all  the 
bells  of  Crowland,  or  all  the  hounds  of  Bruneswold. 

"  'And  thus  they  glided  on  from  stream  to  stream,  until 
they  came  to  the  sacred  isle  "of  the  inheritance  of  the 
Lord,"  the  most  holy  sanctuary  of  -St.  Guthlac  and  his 
monks,  and  the  sole  place  of  refuge  for  any  one  in  all 
tribulations  ;  and,  by  reason  of  the  privileges  granted  by 
the  kings,  a  city  of  grace  and  safety  to  all  who  repent. 

"'As  they  drew  near,  they  passed  every  minute  some 
fisher's  log  canoe,  in  which  worked  with  net  or  line  the 
criminal  who  had  saved  his  life  by  fleeing  to  St.  Guthlac, 
and  becoming  his  man  henceforth  ;  the  slave  who  had 
fled  from  his  master's  cruelty,  and  here  and  there,  in 
those  evil  days,  the  master  who  had  fled  from  the  cruelty 
of  Normans,  who  would  have  done  to  him  as  he  had 
done  to  others.  But  all  old  grudges  were  put  away  there. 
They  had  sought  the  peace  of  St.  Guthlac,  and  therefore 
they  must  keep  his  peace  and  get  their  living  from  the 


72 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


fish  of  the  five  rivers,  within  the  bounds  whereof  was 
peace,  as  of  their  own  quiet  streams  ;  for  the  Abbot  and 
St.  Guthlac  were  the  only  lords  thereof,  and  neither  sum- 
moner,  nor  sheriff  of  the  king,  nor  armed  force  of  knight 
or  earl  could  enter  there. 

"  '  At  last  they  came  to  Crowland  Minster,  a  vast  range 
of  high-peaked  buildings,  founded  on  piles  of  oak  and 
hazel  driven  into  the  fen,  itself  built  almost  entirely  of 
timber  from  the  Bruneswold  ; — barns,  granaries,  stables, 
workshops,  strangers'  hall,  fit  for  the  boundless  hospitality 
of  Crowland  ;  and,  above  all,  the  great  minster  towering 
up,  a  steep  pile,  half  wood  half  stone,  with  narrow  round- 
headed  windows  and  leaden  roofs,  and  above  all  the  great 
wooden  tower,  from  which,  on  high  days,  chimed  out  the 
melody  of  the  seven  famous  bells,  which  had  not  their 
like  in  Enghsh  land.  Outside  the  minster  wall  were  the 
cottages  of  the  labouring  folk ;  and  beyond  them  again 
the  natural  park  of  grass,  dotted  with  mighty  oaks  and 
ashes  ;  and  beyond  all  these,  cornlands  of  inexhaustible 
fertility,  broken  up  by  the  good  Abbot  Egelric  some 
hundred  years  before,  from  which,  in  times  of  dearth,  the 
monks  of  Crowland  fed  the  people  of  all  the  neighbouring 
fens. 

"  '  They  went  into  the  great  court-yard.  All  men  were 
quiet,  yet  all  men  were  busy ;  baking  and  brewing,  carpen- 
tering and  tailoring  in  the  workshops,  reading  and  writing 
in  the  cloisters,  praying  and  singing  in  the  church,  and 
teaching  the  children  in  the  school-house.  Only  the 
ancient  sempects  * — some  near  upon  150  years  old — 
wandered  where  they  would,  or  basked  against  a  sunny 

»  The  sempects  were  monks  who  had  been  such  over  fifty  years,  and  who 
were  consequently  entitled  to  the  privileges  of  age.  Each  had  a  young 
monk  for  a  companion,  hence  the  name,  from  sumpaiktcs  (Greek),  a  partner 
or  coul^,.linou.    See  iNGUurn's  Chronicle  v/lh^  Abbey  of  Croylan.i. 


73 


wall  like  autumn  flies,  with  each  a  young  monk  to  guide 
him  and  listen  to  his  tattle  of  old  days. 

"'So  while  the  world  outside  raged  and  fought  and 
conquered  and  plundered,  they  within  the  holy  isle  kept 
up  some  sort  of  order  and  justice  and  usefulness  and  love 
to  God  and  man.' " 

"A  charming  description,  and  in  Kingsley's  most 
fascinating  manner,"  observed  the  Canon.  "  There  is  a 
very  pretty  story  concerning  Crowland  and  its  misfortunes 
under  the  Danes  in  Churton's  Early  English  Chtirch. 
Some  monasteries  were  houses  of  commerce  too,  and  kept 
ships  for  that  peaceful  purpose  at  a  time  when  ships  were 
mainly  used  only  for  robbery. 

"  Moreover,  these  old  fellows  had  often  more  common 
sense  and  thought  corresponding  with  our  own  in  religious 
matters  than  we  are  apt  to  give  them  credit  for.  Let  me 
read  you  a  bit  from  my  note-book  out  of  an  old  book 
named  The  Mirror  for  Monks,  by  one  Blosius,  a  Bene- 
dictine father  of  the  sixteenth  century — '  How  we  ought 
to  bestow  our  time  from  our  first  rising  to  Matins  in  the 
morning.' 

"'As  soon  as  you  are  awake  and  ready  to  rise  to 
Matins,  devoutly  arm  yourself  with  the  sign  of  the  Cross, 
and  briefly  pray  to  God  that  He  will  vouchsafe  to  blot 
out  the  stains  of  sin  in  you,  and  be  pleased  to  help  you. 
Then,  casting  all  vain  imaginations  out  of  your  mind, 
think  upon  some  other  thing  that  is  spiritual,  and  con- 
ceive as  much  purity  of  heart  as  you  can,  rejoicing  in 
yourself  that  you  are  called  up  to  the  praise  and  worship 
of  your  Creator.  But,  if  frailty  of  body,  heaviness  of 
sleep,  if  conturbation  of  spirit  depress  you,  be  not  out  of 
heart,  but  be  comforted,  and  force  yourself,  overcoming 
all  impediments  with  reason  and  willingness  ;  for  tlie 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  suffereth  violence,  and  the  violent 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


take  it  by  force.  Certainly,  according  to  the  labour  which 
you  undergo  for  the  love  of  God,  such  shall  be  your  re- 
compense and  reward.  Being  come  off  from  your  bed, 
commend  and  offer  yourself,  both  body  and  soul,  to  the 
Most  High ;  make  haste  to  the  choir,  as  to  a  place  of 
refuge  and  the  garden  of  spiritual  delights.  Until  Divine 
Office  begins,  study  to  keep  your  mind  in  peace  and 
simplicity,  free  from  troubles  and  the  multiplicity  of  un- 
certain thoughts  ;  collecting  a  godly  and  sweet  affection 
towards  your  God  by  sincere  meditation  or  prayer.  In 
the  performance  of  the  Divine  Office,  have  a  care  to  pro- 
nounce and  hear  the  holy  words  reverently,  perfectly, 
thankfully,  and  attentively,  that  you  may  taste  that  your 
Lord  is  sweet,  and  may  feel  that  the  Word  of  God  hath 
incomprehensible  sweetness  and  power.  For  whatsoever 
the  Holy  Ghost  hath  dictated  is  indeed  the  life-procuring 
food  and  the  delightful  solace  of  a  chaste,  sober,  and 
humble  soul.  Remember,  tlierefore,  to  be  there  faithfully 
attentive,  but  avoid  too  vehement  cogitations  and  motions 
of  mind,  especially  if  your  head  be  weak ;  lest,  being  hurt 
or  wearied,  confounded  and  straitened  internally,  you  shut 
the  sanctuary  of  God  against  yourself.  Reject,  likewise, 
too  troublesome  care,  which  commonly  bringeth  with 
it  pusillanimity  and  restlessness,  and  persevere  with  a 
gentle,  quiet,  and  watchful  spirit  in  the  praises  of  God, 
without  singularity.  But  if  you  cannot  keep  your  heart 
from  wanderings,  be  not  dejected  in  mind,  but  patiently 
endeavour,  patiently  do  what  lieth  in  your  power,  com- 
mitting the  rest  to  the  Divine  Will.' 

"You  see  how  full  of  the  highest  common  sense  this 
is  ;  how  full  of  real  enthusiasm  ;  how  free  from  false 
enthusiasm.  The  writer  g\iards  carefully  against  the 
vain  longing  (which  is  a  real  and  most  subtle  temptation) 
for  spiritual  joy,  saying :  '  It  shall  not  be  demanded  of 


NUNS. 


75 


s  ou  how  much  internal  sweetness  you  have  here  felt,  but 
how  faithful  you  have  been  in  the  love  and  service  of 
God.'" 

Here  the  conversation  threatened  to  close  ;  but  Joan 
put  in  :  "  Please,  Mr.  Gibson,  den't  stop  yet ;  it  is  so  warm 
here,  we  are  as  much  like  autumn  flies  as  the  sempects, 
and  I  do  so  much  want  to  hear  about  the  nuns." 

"Lecture  number  two,  then,  on  Nuns,"  answered  Mr. 
Gibson  good  -  naturedly.  "  In  the  earliest  records  of 
devoted  women  we  find  widows,  virgins,  and  deaconesses, 
three  orders.  The  title  of  deaconess  represented  rather 
an  office  for  Church  work  than  a  state  of  life,  and 
generally  the  selection  was  made  from  among  the  widows 
and  virgins.  The  term  widow  was  often  used  technically, 
and  applied  to  denote  consecrated  virgins  also.  But  the 
consecrated  virgins  grew  rapidly  in  number  and  import- 
ance, and  at  last  outnumbered  the  widows  properly  so- 
called.  They  lived  privately  at  home  or  alone.  The 
virgin  was  solemnly  consecrated  by  the  Bishop  in  church 
during  the  celebration  of  the  Eucharist  after  a  public 
profession  of  self-devotion.  Among  the  ceremonies, 
giving  the  veil  was  the  most  significant  part.  There  is 
no  record  of  a  vow  in  those  earhest  times  ;  the  public 
profession  was  tantamount  to  a  vow.*  Nor  were  there 
in  the  early  ages  of  the  Church  any  rchgious  houses 
especially  devoted  to  women  ;  for  we  read  that  some 
disguised  themselves  as  men  in  order  to  join  the  ascetics 
in  the  wilderness.  But  if  Christian  me?i  needed  such 
houses  for  rest  and  thought,  women  must  have  needed 
them  far  more,  and  so  it  is  not  long  before  wc  find  a 
thoroughly  organized  convent.  Paulina,  a  noble  Roman 
lady  (in  the  fourth  century),  founded  an  abbey  in  Beth- 

*  From  a  paper  on  "  Vows,  and  their  Rt;lation  to  Religious  Communities," 
by  the  Rev.  T.  T.  CAk  tbu,  in  T/u  Church  and  the  IVorlU. 


76 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


lehem  in  which  she  assembled  virgins,  as  well  of  noble 
estate  as  of  middle  or  low  lineage.  They  were  dressed 
in  uniform,  met  at  appropriate  hours  lor  prayer ;  if  they 
quarrelled,  Paulina  'appeased  them  sweetly.  She  had 
rather  have  them  good,  suffering  sorrow  and  sickness, 
than  that  their  heart  should  be  hurt  by  fleshly  will.  She 
was  marvellous  debonair  and  piteous  to  them  that  were 
sick,  and  comforted  and  served  them  right  busily ;  and 
gave  them  largely  to  eat  such  food  as  they  asked  ;  but  to 
herself  she  was  hard  in  her  sickness  and  sparing,  for  she 
refused  to  eat  flesh  though  she  gave  it  to  others,  and  also 
to  drink  wine  ;  and  she  seemed  that  the  less  she  did  to 
the  sick  in  service,  so  much  less  service  did  she  to  God, 
and  deserved  less  mercy  :  for  the  most  part  she  was  in 
prayer  both  by  day  and  by  night.'*  This  most  self- 
denying  woman  being  also  learned,  seems  to  have  been 
excellently  fitted  to  train  girls  in  mind  and  in  heart. 

"  Before  A.D.  44S,  St.  Bridget  is  said  to  have  founded  a 
nunnery  at  Kildare,  on  the  site  of  a  Druidical  temple 
like  Stonehenge.  The  ancient  religion  of  Ireland  was 
Druidical,  very  bloody  and  stern,  and  here,  as  in  Italy, 
the  Christians  took  the  best  means  of  weaning  the  people 
from  their  false  religion  by  planting  homes  for  the  true 
one  on  the  very  spot  where  they  used  to  worship.  A 
monastery  was  built  close  to  St.  Bridget's  convent,  and 
friendly  inlcrcourbc  seems  to  have  subsisted  between  the 
monks  and  nuns.  Columba  was  more  strict  than  the 
female  Saint,  and  planted  his  convent  on  an  island  at 
some  little  distance  from  lona,  called,  from  that  reason, 
the  Isle  of  Nuns. 

"  In  Britain  there  seeni  to  have  been  societies  of  nuns 
as  early  as  in  Ireland;  probably  we  have  no  record  of  the 

*  Modernized  and  abridged  from  "The  Golden  Legerd,  '  as  quoted  in 
hosbrooke's  British  Mon  -.chism.  Art.  "  British  Nuus." 


77 


earliest.  In  Anglo-Saxon  times  we  hear  a  good  deal  of 
them  much  to  their  credit.  A  nunnery  was  founded  at 
Bath  (A.D.  676),  then  called  Akemanchester— Aching 
Men's  City — where  they  are  certain  to  have  been  kind 
and  skilful  nurses  to  the  poor  sick  folk  and  all  who  even 
then  sought  the  warm  springs  for  a  cure ;  for  we  are  told 
that  physic  and  surgery  formed  part  of  a  nun's  education 
Besides  these,  writing,  drawing,  confectionary,  music,  and 
needlework  were  taught  in  convents.  An  old  writer  tells 
us  of  a  certain  sweet  meadow  called  Nymph  Hay,  with  a 
delightful  prospect  to  the  south-east,  where  as  many  as 
forty  or  fifty  nuns  would  be  seen  of  a  morning,  'spinning 
with  their  wlieels  and  bobbins.'  It  is  a  pretty  picture : 
the  bright  English  grass  dotted  with  black  and  white 
nuns;  the  wheels  humming  like  innumerable  bee-hives; 
the  soft  south  breeze  lifting  the  flax  in  the  baskets.  Nuns 
embroidered  scriptural  scenes  too  for  altar-cloths  and 
hangings.  We  even  hear  of  an  abbess  with  a  notable 
turn  for  commerce;  St.  Mildred,  to  wit,  who  lived  in  the 
Isle  of  Thanct,  and  sent  so  much  corn  by  boat  to  London 
that  the  Church  in  Bread  Street  has  been  very  properly 
called  by  her  name. 

"And  here  I  think  I  must  end  my  slight  sketch  of 
nunneries." 

"  From  all  you  have  told  me,"  said  Joan,  "  it  seems  that 
monks  and  nuns  arc  very  good  people  indeed ;  and  yet  I 
have  heard  that  they  did  many  dreadful  things,  and  that 
it  was  a  great  benefit  when  their  houses  were  done  away 
with." 

"  We  cannot  deny,  I  suppose,  that  there  was  very  much 
in  the  religious  houses  that  was  by  no  means  consistent 
with  their  professions,"  said  Mrs.  Askell. 

"  Conservative  as  I  am,  I  fear  the  conservative  prin- 
ciple was  the  ruin  of  monachism,"  observed  the  Canon. 


78 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


"What  is  the  conservative  principle  ?"  asked  Joan,  with 
vacant  eyes. 

"  Let  me  explain,  because  I  have  no  politics,"  answered 
Mrs.  Askell.  "Conservatism,  Joan,  is  the  love  of  pre- 
serving what  is  old  because  it  is  old.  Humility  and 
reverence  are  in  this  feeling.  A  man  must  be  humble  as 
to  his  own  powers  and  reverent  to  those  of  his  forefathers, 
when  he  can  say,  '  They  ordered  this,  therefore  it  is  pro- 
bably too  good  for  me  to  improve.'  But  it  is  as  reverent 
and  seems  to  me  more  wise  to  say  :  '  This  law  or  institu- 
tion was  well  fitted  for  former  days,  but  another  may  be 
better  for  mine,'  and  so  to  ponder,  and  if  need  be,  to 
make  a  change." 

"  I  will  not  quarrel  ^vith  your  aunt's  definition,  Joan," 
said  the  Canon  playfully ;  "  but  proceed  at  once  to  the 
application.  Monasteries  were  not  only  good,  but  quite 
the  best  things  for  the  stormy  times  of  yore ;  but  when 
quieter  ages  came,  monasteries  increased,  and  became 
places  of  luxury  rather  than  of  necessity  ;  riches  pouring 
in  spoiled  them  in  a  measure ;  there  was  less  need  for 
them  and  less  work  in  them;  it  became  a  fashionable 
thing  for  a  rich  man  to  build  a  religious  house  on  his 
estate,  and  retire  thither  for  some  part  of  each  year.* 
Ladies  did  the  same,  and  you  may  be  sure  that,  though 
their  intention  was  doubtless  good,  these  amateur  abbots 
and  abbesses  were  very  different  from  those  who  had 
done  the  work  when  it  was  by  no  means  fashionable  or 
easy,  but  a  self-renunciation  and  an  exile.  So  riches 
were  one  cause  of  the  spiritual  decay  of  the  religious 
bodies  ;  one-fifth  of  all  the  English  land  was  in  their  pos- 
session before  the  time  of  the  Refonnation.  They  were 
kind  landlords,  but  it  had  not  entered  into  the  original 
design  that  abbots  should  fill  the  ptece  of  squires. 

•  Hook's  ArclMshcps  of  Canterbury,  vol.  i. 


CAUSES  OF  DECLINE. 


79 


"The  great  difficulty  with  the  nuns  seems  to  have  been 
love  of  dress. 

"Oh,  we  poor  frivolous  women!"  cried  Mrs  Askell, 
smiling.  "  Did  love  of  gew-gaws  pursue  us  into  our 
convents?" 

"It  seems  so,  indeed,  for  in  very  early  days  the  nuns 
were  reproved  for  wearing  ermine,  earrings,  and  dresses 
of  linen  and  purple.  A  certain  Gerard  de  Sala,  preaching 
to  the  nuns  of  Fontevraud,  and  seeing  them  with  their 
hair  stylishly  arranged  and  crowned  with  a  fashionable 
head-dress,  shaped  like  horns,  was  so  shocked  that  (as 
the  quaint  chronicle  says)  he  began  to  rave,  and  they 
were  all  soon  after  shorn. 

"Another  great  evil  was  that  many  monasteries  were 
not  at  all  responsible  to  the  Bishop  of  the  diocese,  but 
only  to  the  Pope.  IJattle  Abbey,  built  by  William  the 
Conqueror,  was  the  first  on  which  this  so-called  privilege 
was  conferred.  There  was  always  a  feud  between  the 
secular  clergy  or  parish  priests  and  the  regulars,  or  monks 
who  followed  a  rule  {regula),  as  the  rule  of  St.  Benedict. 
Now  the  Bishops  were  the  overseers  of  tlie  seculars,  and 
in  consequence  the  Abbots  were  very  jealous  of  their 
authority,  and  rejoiced  when  their  monasteries  were  made 
independent,  so  that  the  Bishops  had  no  right  even  to  visit 
them  for  purposes  of  inspection.  The  impartial  scrutiny 
of  the  Bishops  might  have  done  much  to  restrain  idleness 
and  luxury  in  the  monastic  houses. 

"Thus  you  see  that  jealousy  was  another  cause  of  their 
downfall. 

"  A  third  was  the  excessively  stern  discipline  enforced 
by  rule  on  these  houses.  One  is  led  to  think  that  had 
the  rules  been  more  elastic  they  would  have  been  less 
flagrantly  broken.  The  severity  might  have  been  essential 
in  the  first  rough  days,  when  men  needed  to  be  taught 


8o 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


good  habits  like  children ;  but  as  civilization  advanced, 
the  bondage  became  too  irksome." 

"  The  truth  which  Tennyson  has  so  well  expressed  was 
overlooked — 

" '  The  old  order  changeth,  yielding  place  to  new. 
And  God  fulfils  Himself  in  many  ways, 
Lest  one  good  custom  should  corrupt  the  world.*" 

So  said  Mrs.  Askell. 

"It  was  overlooked  indeed.  These  are  some  of  the 
rules  referred  to :  '  Let  every  monk,  when  chidden, 
before  he  speak  a  word,  solicit  pardon  ;  and  when  inter- 
rogated why  he  made  this  solicitation,  confess  his  fault, 
and  afterwards,  upon  command,  arise.  Let  him  who 
upon  reprimand  does  not  immediately  request  pardon, 
be  subject  to  severe  punishment.'* 

"  Again,  '  When  anything  is  broken,  or  lost  in  the 
kitchen  or  elsewhere,  the  culprit  shall  voluntarily  confess 
his  fault  and  prostrate  himself  upon  the  ground,  holding 
the  broken  object  in  his  hand  while  asking  forgiveness.'! 

"  If  apples  or  fruit  were  given  to  the  monks  by  the 
cellarer,  they  were  to  eat  them  immediately  at  a  side 
tab]e."t 

"  Exactly  the  most  uncomfortable  way  of  eating  one's 
dessert,"  remarked  Mrs.  Askell. 

"They  were  not  to  pick  fruit  from  the  garden,  nor  even 
to  pick  up  that  which  had  fallen  from  the  trees.  There 
were  rules  for  bathing,  for  shaving,  for  putting  on  shoes  ; 
and  on  Christmas  night,  as  a  treat,  the  monks  had  a  good 
fire  to  wash  by." 

"Why,  they  were  treated  like  little  boys!"  cried  Joan. 

"  Exactly  ;  and  I  fear  that  with  many  this  treatment 
had  the  effect  of  robbing  them  of  that  sense  of  responsi 

•  Dnnstan's  Concord  of  Rules,  quoted  in  Fosdkoke's  British  Monnchism^ 
chap.  iv.  ^  I'll.-  Rule  of  Fulgcntius.    Ibid.  %  II 


J 


THE  FEAST  OF  ASSES.  8i 


bility  which  distinguishes  the  man  from  the  child.  A 
man's  amusements  are  among  the  chief  tests  of  his 
character,  and  we  have  a  pathetic  proof  of  this  in  the 
monastic  diversions.  For  instance  :  on  Christmas  Day 
was  celebrated  a  '  Feast  of  Asses,'  a  sort  of  drama,  of 
which  the  plot  is  the  deliverance  of  the  three  youths  from 
Nebuchadnezzar's  furnace.  It  was  called  the  Feast  of 
Asses  because  Balaam  on  his  ass  was  a  principal  figure 
in  a  grand  procession  which  began  the  play.  The  pro- 
cession was  a  funny  mixture,  including  Aaron  in  a  mitre, 
holding  a  flower ;  Daniel,  clothed  in  a  green  tunic,  having 
a  juvenile  aspect  and  carrying  a  wheat-ear.  Then  came 
Habakkuk,  a  lame  old  man,  carrying  a  scrip  full  of 
radishes,  which  he  ate  while  he  spoke  ;  and  long  palms 
to  strike  the  Gentiles — possibly  from  Habakkuk  iii.  14. 
Next  followed  Balaam,  the  grand  joke  of  the  evening, 
with  his  ass  and  a  pair  of  big  spurs.  There  was  also  one 
day  of  general  liberty,  December  17th,  on  which  the  lower 
monks  chose  one  of  them  to  be  what  was  called  '  Abbot 
of  Fools,'  or  mock  Abbot  for  the  time  :  a  '  Te  Deum'  was 
sung  upon  his  election  ;  he  was  cheered  and  carried  to  a 
house  or  room,  where  fruit  and  wine  were  presented  to 
him.  All  did  him  reverence  as  Abbot.  Then  there  was 
a  mock  service,  with  shouting  and  hissing  instead  of 
chants  ;  a  sermon  from  the  porter,  and  then  a  general 
rush  of  the  whole  body  round  the  town.  The  mock 
Abbot  wore  mock  canonicals,  with  a  feather,  and  a  suit- 
able belt ;  one  still  preserved  consists  of  thirty-five 
square  bits  of  wood  carved  with  grotesque  figures  of 
fools,  huntsmen,  &c. 

"  These  seem  innocent  follies,  if  we  pass  a  little  pro- 
fanity ;  but  we  feel  that  something  was  amiss  in  a  system 
under  which  such  mirth  was  the  relaxation  of  men  pro- 
fessing to  be  devoted  to  the  study  of  the  divine  law.  At 
G 


82 


THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS. 


all  times  there  have  been  holy  and  learned  monks,  but 
one  must  judge  of  a  system  as  much  from  its  effect  on  the 
masses  as  on  an  exceptional  few. 

"  And  thus,  in  course  of  time,  the  monasteries  becoming 
less  and  less  necessary  as  peace  and  civilization  spread 
in  the  land,  their  essential  virtue  deteriorated,  and  the 
good  they  had  done  was  in  a  great  measure  forgotten. 
Thus,  Henry  VIII.  could  bring  about  their  dissolution, 
which  even  he,  clever  tyrant  as  he  was,  could  never  have 
effected  while  the  hearts  of  his  people  were  as  one  against 
him. 

"I  think  Mrs.  Askell  and  you,  Joan,  will  absolve  me 
from  entering  now  into  the  long  history  of  that  dissolu- 
tion. You  can  well  imagine  the  many  painful  scenes 
which  ensued  ;  loss  and  gain  were  perhaps  equally 
balanced  at  the  time  in  the  results  of  the  operation ;  but 
the  old  order  had  changed,  the  monasteries  were  no 
more." 

"  And  before  their  destruction,  while  the  decay  was  as 
yet  only  internal,  a  new  order  had  sprung  up  to  fulfil 
their  defects,  and  afterwards  to  introduce  new  confusion," 
observed  Mrs.  AskeU. 

"  You  mean  the  Mendicant  Friars,"  said  the  Canon. 

"Yes.  Joan  and  I  must  give  some  consideration  to 
them  at  home." 

A  vote  of  thanks  was  now  passed  by  the  ladies  to  their 
kind  lecturer,  and  his  thirsty  throat  was  refreshed  by  fruit 
from  Mrs.  Askell's  exhaustless  bag.  Before  very  long, 
they  said  "  Good-bye  "  to  the  quaint,  quiet,  pleasant  spot, 
and  drove  briskly  home  again. 

"  It  has  been  a  delicious  day,"  said  Joan  to  her  aunt 
that  evening,  "  and  1  am  very  little  tired.  Dear  aunt,  may 
I  ask  one  question.''  You  seemed  to  be  praying  in  that 
ruir.ed  chapel.    Were  you?" 


CONSECRATED  PLACES. 


83 


"I  never  can  go  into  any  place  once  consecrated  to 
God  without  a  prayer,"  answered  Mrs.  Askell. 

"Will  you  tell  me  what  you  pray  for?  In  Church  I 
always  pray  that  I  may  attend  to  the  service ;  but  there  I 
should  not  know  what  to  ask." 

"  In  such  ruined  places,  I  say  a  few  simple  words  like 
these :  '  Lord,  bless  and  purify  the  work  of  all  who  have 
ever  worshipped  here,  and  grant  that  the  good  which  they 
did  may  still  widen  and  spread,  and  that  if  they  did  evil, 
its  effects  may  cease.'" 


CHAPTER  VL 


'  Owr  atlr  tjntema  im  tieir  itf. 

TkeyiMattkarJMfmMdamstUit; 
ThiymrthUir,ltMlitktt»/Ttt*, 
Ami  Th»m,OL4>r<mrtm^AMm  tier  ' 

TEJrrrsoK.  /■  Mrmtritm. 

T  T  .5  but  a  few  days  after  their  pleasant  excmsion. 
i  ]i^{rs.  Askell,  laying  down  her  book,  the  new 

number  of  a  first-class  magazine,  exclaimed :  The  mis- 
takes which  secular  writers  make  when  they  toach  on 
Church  matters  are  reaDy  too  absurd !  This  essayist 
speaks  of  a  Franciscan  monkr 
"  What  is  a  Franciscan  monk  ? '  asked  Joan. 
«  There  ne%-er  was  such  a  person,  my  dear.  There  have 
been  Franciscan  friars  in  plentj%  bat  they  were  from  the 
nrst  the  biaer  enemies  of  the  monks." 

"How  strange !  for  the  monks  seem  to  have  been  at 
first  too  good  to  have  enemies.  Have  they  been  enemies 
ever  since  there  have  been  monks  at  all  ?  ' 

-Ever  since  th^e  ha%-e  friars,  which  is  qii-e 
another  matter.  Do  you  remember  what  Mr.  Gibson  to.a 
you  about  the  length  of  time  during  which  monachism 

has  existed?"   

«  He  said  it  began  with  a  wish  to  go  away  from  the 
wicked  world  and  ser^e  God  peacefiilly,  and  that  ther: 
were  people  who  had  retired  to  the  deserts  before  the  tin  e 
of  Christ." 


THE  FRIARS. 


8S 


"  Quite  true.  Thus  you  see  how  very  ancient  monachism 
s.  Now  there  were  no  friars  until  the  twelfth  century, 
nly  seven  hundred  years  ago  ;  whereas  to  find  the  be- 
inning  of  monachism,  we  must  go  back  something  like 
wo  thousand  years." 

"  Really  !    Then  what  were  the  friars 

"  I  intend  the  answer  to  that  question  to  be  our  lesson  of 
)-day,  and  1  am  glad  you  have  yourself  led  the  way  to  it." 

"  Ah  !  but,  auntie,  it  was  you  who  made  me  ask." 

Mrs.  Askell  laughed,  and  so  did  Joan. 

"  Well,  I  confess  to  a  little  trickery  ;  but,  after  all,  this 
.  only  what  I  tr>'  to  do  in  all  our  conversations — to  lead 
ju  to  ask  questions  for  yourself." 

"Well,  now  for  the  friars,"  said  Joan,  nestling  up  to 
jr  aunt's  side,  as  she  sat  on  a  stool  at  her  feet. 
"Well,  then,  for  the  friars.  They  arose  in  very  sad 
id  troublous  times,  when  the  Church  seemed  nearer  to 
lin  perhaps  than  she  has  ever  seemed  since.  It  was 
>  if  the  Church  were  a  plain,  once  rich  and  beautiful, 
It  whose  waters  had  stagnated,  its  plants  withered  and 
jcayed,  so  that  disorder  and  want  were  spreading  on 
1  sides.  And  then  God  called  out  the  friars,  like  a 
eat  tempest,  to  stir  the  waters  and  dispel  the  blight, 
id  sweep  away  infection.  The  monks  were  no  longer 
ich  as  the  fervent  self-denying  followers  of  St.  Columba 
>d  St.  Aidan  had  been.  They  now  received  personal 
comes  from  their  monasteries.  They  used  to  accept 
vitations  outside  the  cloister,  worked  and  fasted  little, 
ying  in  excuse  that  human  nature  was  less  strong  than 
i-merly.*  Preaching  was  almost  entirely  neglected,  and 
erefore,  since  all  the  service  was  in  Latin,  the  poor  had 
1  chance  of  learning  but  through  their  senses,  which 
ire  doubtless  charmed  by  the  gorgeous  colour  and 

Palmer's  History  of  tlie  Church,  p.  225. 


86 


THE  FRIARS. 


sweet  music  then  general.  The  monks,  you  know,  were 
bound  by  their  rules  to  think  rather  of  the  care  of  their 
own  souls  than  of  missionary  work."  * 

"  But  St.  Aidan  was  a  missionary." 

"  Yes,  indeed  ;  a  splendid  missionary,  as  were  many  in 
those  wild  heathen  days.  But  in  their  lives  they  were 
rather  like  the  Apostles  than  models  for  monks  living  in 
quiet  houses  like  Crowland. 

"  Now,  in  the  twelfth  century  people  seemed  to  be 
awakening  to  their  spiritual  needs,  and  requiring  to  be 
fed  and  taught.  Since  the  monks  would  not,  or  could  not, 
answer  to  the  call,  false  teachers  arose  who  set  up  their 
pulpits  everywhere,  and  heresies  began  to  spring  up  on  all 
sides.  It  was  a  sad  matter  ;  but  what  was  to  be  done? 
The  Pope  had  no  weapon  to  turn  against  these  false 
opinions.    Suddenly  God  put  one  into  his  hand. 

"St.  Dominic  (Ijorn  A.D.  1170)  and  St.  Francis  (bom 
A.D.  1 1 82)  founded  the  Mendicant  Orders,  and  thus 
stemmed  the  tide. 

"St.  Dominic  was  born  in  old  Castile,  in  Spain,  of 
noble  parents,  and  from  boyhood  showed  great  power  of 
self-denial.  During  a  famine  he  sold  his  clothes  to  feed 
the  poor,  and  once  offered  to  be  himself  sold  for  a  slave 
in  order  to  redeem  a  man  who  was  in  bondage  to  the 
Moors.  When  his  education  was  complete  he  took  priest's 
orders,  and  was  soon  noted  for  his  great  austerity.  On 
one  occasion  he  met  three  papal  legates,  who  had  been 
sent  to  Languedoc  with  a  grand  array,  to  preach  down 
the  heretics  who  abounded  there,  and  were  returning  un- 
successful. Dominic  exclaimed :  '  It  is  not  by  the  display 
of  power  and  pomp,  cavalcades  of  retainers,  and  richly 
houseled  palfreys,  by  gorgeous  apparel,  that  the  heretics 
win  proselytes ;  it  is  by  zealous  preaching,  by  apostolic 

*  Milman's  Latin  Christianity^  book  ix.  chap.  Lx. 


sr.  DOMINIC. 


87 


humility,  by  austerity,  by  seeming,  it  is  true,  but  yet 
seeming  holiness.  Zeal  must  be  met  by  zeal ;  humility 
by  humility  ;  false  sanctity  by  real  sanctity ;  preaching 
falsehood  by  preaching  truth.'  St.  Dominic  was  well 
fitted  to  oppose  enemies,  being  noble  enough  to  do  justice 
to  their  merits.  A  man  who  is  unfair  to  those  with  whom 
he  does  not  agree  will  persuade  few  to  agree  with  him. 
St.  Dominic  was  very  brave,  very  stern,  very  cruel  to  the 
bodies  of  heretics,  doubtless  hoping  by  that  means  to 
show  the  best  mercy  to  their  souls.  As  a  proof  of  this 
last,  he  joined  (at  least  with  his  presence  on  the  spot)  a 
terrible  war  carried  on  against  the  heretics  of  Toulouse 
and  Languedoc,  called  Albigenses,  under  the  English 
Earl  of  Leicester,  Simon  de  Montfort.  Some  say  he 
marched  in  front  of  the  army,  bearing  the  cross,  and 
almost  miraculously  escaped  injury.  This  latter  account, 
however,  seems  not  to  be  founded  on  fact. 

"  He  must  also  have  been  very  unselfish,  for  he  stated 
solemnly,  though  in  confidence,  to  a  friend  :  '  God  has 
never  refused  me  anything  that  I  have  prayed  for.'  Such 
being  the  case  (and  he  was  not  the  man  to  lie  on  such  a 
point),  we  may  be  sure  that  he  had  asked  nothing  which 
he  could  not  desire  in  the  name  of  Him  who  is  Love. 
But  St.  Francis  was  needed  to  help  St.  Dominic  in  his 
great  work  ;  he  was  the  apostle  of  '  mystic  devotion,'  as 
St.  Dominic  was  the  apostle  of  fiery  zeal. 

"  St.  Francis  was  born  at  Assisi,  in  Italy ;  his  father 
was  a  rich  merchant,  and  he  in  youth  seems  to  have 
been  a  clever  boy,  fond  of  spending  to  extravagance  on 
banquets,  and  in  giving  lavishly  to  those  who  were  in 
need.  This  is  a  remarkable  trait ;  Francis,  as  you  see, 
never  had  any  greed  of  gold :  even  in  his  wastefulness 
we  may  observe  some  prophecy  of  the  enthusiasm  which 
later  renounced  all  possessions  for  God's  sake. 


THE  FRIARS. 


"While  still  very  young,  he  was  taken  captive  in  one 
of  the  petty  wars  which  were  stirring  up  the  country,  and 
remained  a  year  in  ]3rison.  When  set  free,  he  was  seized 
with  a  terrible  illness,  which  nearly  destroyed  him  ;  and 
during  that  time  the  thoughts  which  must  have  been 
nestling  at  his  heart  throughout  his  imprisonment  were 
heated  to  fervour,  and  began  to  take  a  definite  shape. 
The  work  going  on  within  him  was  completed  by  a  dream, 
in  which  he  saw  himself  as  a  warrior  going  to  the  fight 
He  at  once  set  out,  as  he  fancied,  to  obey  the  vision,  by 
joining  a  war  in  the  Neapolitan  States,  where  he  meant 
to  place  himself  on  the  weaker  side.  But,  while  sleeping 
on  his  journey,  he  had  a  second  dream,  teaching  him  that 
his  arms  were  to  be  weapons  of  the  Spirit,  and  were  to 
be  used  against  sin  in  his  own  native  town  of  Assisi.  It 
was  this  power  of  living  in  a  spiritual  world,  of  listening 
to  God's  voice  in  '  visions  of  the  night,'  and  of  implicitly 
obeying  every  command  which  he  believed  to  be  of  God, 
that  fitted  him  for  the  great  work  he  was  to  do.  He  now 
began  to  speak  of  Poverty  as  his  bride  ;  he  put  on  the 
rags  of  a  beggar,  and  threw  down  all  the  money  which 
he  possessed  before  the  altar  of  St.  Peter  at  Rome.  On 
his  return  to  Assisi,  he  began  at  once  to  rebuild  a  church 
there,  carrying  stones  with  his  own  hands,  and  promising 
to  pay  with  a  prayer  for  every  stone  that  was  given  him 
for  the  purpose.  The  people  at  first  laughed  at  him  ;  but 
ere  long  his  zeal  kindled  zeal  in  them,  and  not  one  church 
alone,  but  three  arose  in  the  town. 

"  Disciples  now  began  to  gather  around  Francis  of 
Assisi  ;  he  led  them  to  a  lonely  spot  beside  the  river, 
and  tried  what  used  to  be  called  '  Bible  lots'  for  their  rule 
and  guidance.  Thrice  opening  the  Bible  at  hazard,  his 
eye  fell  on  these  three  passages  : — 

'•  •  If  thou  wilt  be  perfect,  sell  all  thou  hast  and  give  to 


ST.  FRANCIS  OF  ASSISl. 


89 


the  poor.'  '  Take  nothing  for  your  journey.'  *  If  any  one 
would  come  after  Me,  let  him  take  up  his  cross  and  follow 
Me.'  With  only  twelve  followers,  he  then  presented  him- 
self before  the  Pope  (Innocent  111.)  to  ask  his  sanction 
of  the  proposed  undertaking.  The  Pontiff  at  first  refused 
to  hear  him,  but  God  afterwards  so  worked  on  his  mind 
that  he  granted  an  interview,  and  gave  permission  for  the 
order  to  be  founded.  When  I  tell  you  that  the  Bene- 
dictine monks  were  the  first  to  give  a  church  to  the  new- 
order  of  Franciscans,  you  will  say  that  I  was  wrong  in 
stating  that  the  friars  were  always  enemies  of  the  monks. 
But  my  meaning  was,  that  the  friars  from  the  first  waged 
war  against  the  wealth  and  idleness  which  had  corrupted 
the  monastic  orders,  in  the  same  spirit  in  which  St. 
Dominic  reproved  the  legates.  The  friars  were  to  have 
no  property  whatever  ;  even  the  clothes  they  wore  and 
their  religious  books  were  not  to  be  reckoned  as  positively 
their  own.  The  only  reason  for  which  they  might  in  any 
case  receive  money  was  to  assist  a  sick  brother. 

"  A  noble  lady  of  Assisi,  called  Clara,  actuated  by  the 
same  fervent  enthusiasm  as  St.  Francis,  entered  into  a 
convent  attached  to  the  church  which  he  had  built  with 
his  own  hands,  and  founded  what  was  called  '  The  Poor 
Sisterhood  of  St.  Clare.' 

"Now,  St.  Francis,  filled  with  loving  mysticism,  went 
forth  to  preach,  and,  in  1219,  he  counted  5,000  Friars 
Minor  ('  Lesser  Brothers,'  as  he  modestly  called  his  dis- 
ciples), sprung  from  the  twelve  who  had  gone  forth  only 
seven  years  before.  He  penetrated  into  the  very  presence 
of  the  Sultan,  who  treated  him  with  great  respect,  though 
he  could  not  be  converted  by  St.  Francis's  preaching.  He 
worked  wonders,  however,  in  turning  the  tide  of  heresy. 
The  preaching  of  his  followers  met  the  heretics  on  their 
own  ground,  as  the  monks,  keeping  within  their  cloisters, 


THE  FRIARS. 


could  never  do.  The  great  success  of  Francis  was  among 
the  poor;  it  was  said  of  him  that  he  was  'glorified  by 
humility.'  His  loving  heart  went  out,  not  only  to  men, 
but  also  to  all  God's  other  creatures.  They  were  to  him 
as  friends,  as  brothers  and  sisters.  A  beautiful  hymn, 
said  to  be  of  his  writing,  will  show  you  what  I  mean." 

Seeking  among  her  papers,  Mrs.  Askell  found  the 
hymn  : — 

"SONG  OF  THE  CREATURES. 
"  Highest,  omnipotent,  good  Lord, 

Glory  and  honour  to  Thy  name  adored. 

And  praise  and  every  blessing. 

Of  everything  Thou  art  the  source. 

No  man  is  worthy  to  pronounce  Thy  name. 
"  Praised  by  His  creatures  all. 

Praised  be  the  Lord  my  God, 

B;-  Messer  Sun,  my  brother,  above  all, 

Who  by  his  ray  lights  us  and  lights  the  day  ; 

Radiant  is  he,  with  his  great  splendour  stored, 

Thy  glory.  Lord,  sonfessing. 

By  sister  Moon  and  Stars  my  Lord  !s  praised. 

Where  clear  and  fair  they  in  the  heavens  are  raised. 
"  By  brother  Wind,  my  Lord,  Thy  praise  is  said, 

By  air  and  clouds  and  the  blue  sky  o'erhead. 

By  which  Thy  creatures  all  are  kept  and  fed. 
**  By  one  most  humble,  useful,  precious,  chaste. 

By  sister  Water,  O  my  Lord,  Thou  art  praised. 
**And  praised  is  my  Lord 

By  brother  Fire— he  who  lights  up  the  night. 

Jocund,  robust  is  he,  and  strong  and  bright. 
"  Praised  art  Thou,  my  Lord,  by  mother  Earth, 

Thou  who  sustained  her,  and  govemest, 

And  to  her  flowers,  fruit,  herbs,  dost  colour  give  and  birth. 
*  "Praised  by  our  sister  Death,  my  Lord,  art  Thou, 

From  whom  no  living  man  escapes  ; 

Who  die  in  mortal  sin  have  mortal  woe  ; 

But  blessed  they  who  die  doing  Thy  will ; 

The  second  death  can  strike  at  them  no  blow. 
"  Praises,  and  thanks,  and  blessing  to  my  Master  be : 

Serve  ye  Him  all,  with  great  humility." 

*  The  last  verse  was  written  at  the  time  of  severe  sicknes* 


SONG  OF  THE  CREATURES.  91 


The  original  of  the  song  runs  as  follows  : 

"  AUissimo,  omnipotcnte,  bon  Signore, 

Ttie  son  Ic  laudc,  la  gloria,  ct  I'onore, 
Et  ogm  bencdictiojic, 
A  tc  solo  se  confano, 

Et  luillo  homo  c  clegno  di  noininarte. 
"  Laudato  sia  Die,  mio  Signore, 

Cum  tuttc  le  tue  creature, 

Specialmente  niesscr  lo  fratc  sole 

II  quale  giorna  et  illumina  nui  per  lui 

Et  ello  c  bello  ct  radiante  cum  grande  splendore 

De  te,  Signore,  porta  significatione. 
*'  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore,  per  suor  luna  et  per  le  stcUe, 

In  cielo  le  hai  formate  clare  e  belle. 
*'  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore,  per  fratc  vento, 

Et  per  I'aire  et  nuvolo  ;  et  sereno  et  ogiii  tempo  ; 

Per  le  quale  sia,  a  le  lue  creature  sostentamento. 
*'  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore,  per  suor  aqua. 

La  quale  e  molto  utile  et  humile  et  pretiosa  et  casta. 
"  Laudato  sio,  mio  Signore,  per  fratc  foco. 

Per  lo  quale  tu  alumini  la  nocte 

Et  cllo  e  bello  et  jocundo  et  robustissimo  ct  forte. 
"  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore,  per  nostra  madre  terra 

La  quale  nc  sostenta  et  guberna, 

Et  produce  diversi  fructi  et  coloriti  fiori  et  lierba. 
"  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore, 

Per  quelle  che  perdonano  per  lo  tuo  amore 

Et  sosteneno  infirmitade  et  tribulatione, 

lieate  quelli  che  sostcnerano  in  pace, 

Chi  da  ti,  altissimo  serano  incoronati. 
**  Laudato  sia,  mio  Signore,  per  suor  nostra  morte  corporate. 

Da  la  quale  nullo  homo  vivente  puo  scamparc, 

Guai  a  quelli  che  more  in  peccato  mortale 

Beati  quelli  che  se  trovano  nell  tue  saiiLtissimc  volunlate 

Che  la  morte  sccunda  non  lo  por^  far  mai 
"Laudate  et  hencdicitc,  mio  Signore,  ct  rcgratiate 
Et  servite  a  lui  cum  grande  huinililade." 

"And  on  his  death-bed  he  said,  'Welcome,  sister 
Death  !"' 

"Auntie,"  said  Joan,  after  some  pondering,  "I  am 


92 


THE  FRIARS. 


going  to  say  a  silly  thing,  I  fear,  but  do  tell  me  this  :  no 
doubt  St.  Francis  thought  it  desirable  for  all  people  to 
belong  to  his  order,  and  if  so,  how  could  he  expect  the 
world  to  go  on  if  ho  one  had  any  money  ?" 

"  1  am  not  sure,  Joan,  that  he  would  have  wished  all  men 
to  belong  to  his  order.  He  trusted  that  God  would  gather 
to  him  those  for  whom  his  rule  of  humility  and  poverty 
was  wholesome.  But  when  multitudes  offered  themselves, 
as  in  one  case  a  whole  village  did,  he  adopted  a  good 
plan  in  admitting  them  to  a  less  rigidly  governed  branch 
of  his  order,  called  Tertiaries.  These  were  allowed  to 
retain  their  position  in  the  world,  and  the  chief  injunc- 
tions laid  upon  them  seem  to  have  been  to  pay  their 
debts,  to  give  up  all  which  they  had  gained  unfairly,  to 
fast,  to  attend  church  regularly,  and  to  be  sober  in  their 
dress  and  mode  of  living." 

"  How  good  it  would  be  if  our  towns  would  do  so 
now ! " 

"  It  would  indeed  be  a  blessed  thing.  And  that  re- 
minds me  of  a  suggeslion  which  I  have  lately  met  with, 
and  which  is  to  some  extent  now  being  worked  out— 
that  there  might  with  advantage  be  a  band  of  priests  in 
our  own  Church,  men  of  fervent  and  moving  eloquence, 
specially  devoted  to  the  work  of  preaching,  wherever  a 
need  of  such  an  incitement  to  new  spiritual  life  might 
occur.  Where  the  parish  priest  has  in  vain  enforced  the 
old  truths,  an  abler  preacher,  with  all  the  charm  of 
novelty,  might  come  to  stir  up  the  callous  town  or  village 
by  a  course  of  mission  services,  or  by  house  to  house 
visitation.  So  the  parish  priest  would  receive  rest  and 
assistance,  and  his  words  of  counsel  would  be  estab- 
lished by  the  mouth  of  another  witness. 

"This  very  work  was  undertaken  by  the  friars,  and 
great  success  at  first  attended  their  preaching.  But, 


PREACniNCr. 


93 


alas!  ere  a  century  had  passed,  we  find  the  monks 
blaming  the  Franciscans  (and  with  too  great  justice)  for 
unsettling  their  flocks  and  using  underhand  means  to 
obtain  legacies  from  dying  penitents  and  gifts  from  living 
ones.  Their  services,  at  first  very  simple,  became  over- 
laden with  ceremonial,  and  the  friars  were  only  distin- 
guished from  others  by  their  entire  freedom  from  local 
control,  being  responsible  solely  to  the  Pope. 

"And  so  this  system  had  its  day  ;  its  originators  were 
great  and  grand  men  ;  its  aim  was  noble  ;  its  efficacy  at 
first  was  great ;  but  it,  too,  fell  off  from  its  first  works. 
The  root  of  decay  was  in  it ;  the  '  dissenting  principle' 
was  introduced* — that  is,  the  principle  of  withdrawal 
from  the  primeval  and  recognized  discipline  of  Church 
government,  and  of  seeking  to  reform  the  Church  by  the 
addition  of  erratic  workers  outside  the  pale.  There  was 
in  it  some  of  the  weakness  of  the  house  divided  against 
itself ;  such  is  the  history  of  the  later  dissenting  bodies  ; 
such  the  history  of  the  best  founded  of  them — namely, 
the  Wesleyans.  It  is  the  history  of  true  zeal,  fervent  and 
real,  yearning  to  bring  about  the  salvation  of  souls,  but  a 
zeal  and  a  yearning  made  obvious  chiefly  in  a  determined 
wandering  from  those  old  paths  worn  firm  by  the  tread  of 
the  whole  grand  procession  of  the  Church." 

•  Chukton's  Early  Uritish  Church,  p.  349, 


CHAPTER  VII, 


31  Be^tim  of  €buuh  l^Wtori?. 

**  Gevi  moves  in  a  mysterious  way^ 
His  wonders  to  perform  ; 
He  plants  His  footsteps  on  the  sea. 
And  rides  upon  the  storm." 

W.  COWPER. 


T  the  following  lesson  Mi*.  Askell  came  armed  with 


one  large  book  only. 
"  This,"  said  she,  "  is  one  of  the  standard  works  of  our 
language,  which  you  must  read  by  and  by.  It  is  the 
Life  of  Wesley,  by  Robert  Southey.  Southey  is  not  an 
impartial  writer  ;  for  love  of  the  English  Church  was  so 
strong  with  him  as  to  cause  him  to  fall  into  the  error  of 
jealousy  and  exclusiveness.  But  his  reasoning  is  well 
founded  and  usually  just,  and  as  a  biography  the  work  is 
intensely  interesting.  It  contains  in  one  long  chapter  an 
excellent  epitome  of  Church  History.  In  order  to  sum 
up  what  I  have  said  and  carry  it  on  in  a  slight  sketch,  I 
shall  follow  the  course  of  this  chapter,  giving  you  the 
substance  of  it  in  simple  language,  Southey's  being 
the  graver  historical  kind. 

******  ♦ 

"  Christianity  was  at  its  beginning  preached  to  the  poor 
by  poor  men  ;  and  then  it  made  its  way  up  to  the  higher 
grades  of  society.  It  was  more  effectually  preached  in 
cities  than  in  the  country;  this  would  naturally  be  the 


CONVERSION  OF  BRITAIN.  95 

case  ;  the  apostles  would  choose  the  rich  soil  of  a  large 
population  for  the  good  seed,  and  the  minds  of  citizens 
would  be  more  open  to  inquiry  than  those  of  the  more 
ignorant  peasants.  Thus  the  word  paganus,  a  country- 
man, came  to  signify  a  heathen  or  pagan. 

"  When  the  Roman  empire  was  broken  up,  the  work  of 
conversion,  especially  in  these  northern  countries,  had  to 
be  begun  again,  and  now  the  missionaries  sought  their 
converts  in  Courts,  and  monarchs  found  good  political 
reasons  for  accepting  the  Christian  faith.  Thus,  at  its 
second  preaching,  Christianity  began  in  the  higher  grades, 
and  made  its  way  down,  spreading  arts  and  civilization. 
The  great  missionaries  should  never  be  forgotten ;  they 
ran  enormous  risks,  and  won  enormous  victories. 

"The  conversion  of  Britain  had  not  been  completed 
when  (in  the  fifth  century)  the  island  ceased  to  be  a  part 
of  the  Roman  empire.  Roman  gods  were  worshipped  here, 
and  the  bloody  Uruidical  religion,  the  ancient  religion  of 
the  whole  of  Britain,  was  still  cherished." 

"  I  have  heard  hideous  tales  of  the  Druids  :  How  on  a 
great  festival  they  made  a  monstrous  image  of  basket- 
work,  filled  it  with  living  children,  and  burnt  it  and  them.' 

"  True  ;  and  to  replace  such  a  creed  came  the  mild 
faith  of  Christ,  when,  the  Saxons  having  overrun  the 
land,  Augustine  came,  A.d.  596,  spreading  the  Gospel  in 
the  South,  while  the  British  Bishops,  as  St.  Aidan,  were 
working  in  the  North.  After  the  Saxons  had  become 
a  Christian  people,  a  fresh  flood  of  heathenism  came  in 
with  the  Danes  (ninth  century)  ;  and  from  the  time  of 
Alfred  until  the  Conquest  a  heathen  party  always  existed 
in  our  land,  hoping  for  future  power.  It  was  fed  by  the 
incomings  of  the  northern  people  of  Denmark  ;  but  after 
the  Norman  Conquest  (a.d.  1066)  these  recruits  ceased, 
and  the  heathen  party  died  out. 


96         A  REVIEW  OF  CHURCH  HISTORY. 

"  During  the  first  centuries  of  the  Saxon  Church  there 
were  no  parochial  divisions.  The  clergy  resided  in  epis- 
copal monasteries  {i.e.  monasteries  under  the  control  of  a 
Bishop),  as  they  had  been  brought  up.  Thence  they  were 
sent  out  to  preach  and  to  administer  the  offices  of  religion 
in  the  few  churches  which  existed,  or  where  there  was  no 
church,  at  a  cross  in  the  open  air.  Having  finished  their 
task,  they  returned  home  to  their  monastery,  and  others 
were  sent  forth  on  the  same  duty.  Thus,  church  services 
and  preaching  were  rarely  heard,  and  those  nobles  who 
appreciated  them  for  themselves  or  for  their  vassals, 
whom  Christianity  would  train  in  contentment  and  obedi- 
ence, built  churches  on  their  lands  and  endowed  them  for 
the  maintenance  of  resident  priests.  Bishops  favoured 
the  scheme ;  parishes  were  formed  on  most  of  the  great 
domains,  and  the  system  of  itinerant  or  wandering 
preaching  fell  into  disuse. 

"  You  remember  that  it  was  Theodore  of  Tarsus, 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  A.D.  668,  who  was  mainly 
instrumental  in  bringing  about  this  excellent  order  of 
things.  Yet,  though  the  systsm  seems  so  much  better  for 
the  people,  it  had  disadvantages  for  the  clerg)',  who  now, 
instead  of  dwelling  in  a  retined,  religious  home,  under  the 
Bishop's  eye,  were  placed,  each  alone,  among  a  flock  of 
ignorant  boors,  and  thus  too  often  their  own  nature 
degenerated. 

The  Norman  Conquest  brought  our  Church  into  closer 
connection  with  that  of  Rome,  and  so  did  good,  for  the 
light  of  the  world  was  there — dim  indeed  and  obfuscated, 
untrimmed  and  wavering  in  the  socket,  but  living  and 
DuiTiing  still.  Could  it  have  been  carried  out  in  purity 
(which  it  never  can  while  human  nature  is  what  it  is),  the 
papal  scheme  would  have  been  the  giandest  the  world 
li.as  known,  opening  to  all  men  of  virtue  and  talent,  even 


LOLLARDS. 


97 


to  men  of  the  lowest  rank,  a  position  equal  to  that  of  the 
highest  nobles,  which  gave  all  classes  a  vital  interest  in 
the  Church.  The  unmarried  state  of  the  clergy  freed 
them  from  domestic  cares,  and  the  Church  gave  them  a 
maintenance.  Those  who  desired  study,  could  study; 
those  who  desired  to  work,  could  work. 

"  But  errors  crept  in,  so  gross  and  abundant,  that  the 
Church  became  '  like  a  garden,  in  which  things  rank  and 
gross  in  nature  were  running  to  seed ;  but  they  did  not 
possess  it  wholly;  it  still  produced  beautiful  flowers,  and 
wholesome  herbs  and  fruit.' 

"  Our  Church,  from  the  Norman  days,  remained  so 
closely  connected  with  Rome  as  to  share  all  her  abuses. 
Our  kings  bowed  down  to  the  power  of  the  Pope,  and 
most  of  our  large  benefices  were  filled  by  foreigners.  Yet  a 
spirit  of  independence  remained  among  the  people  which 
no  Court  influence  could  destroy.  Reformers  often  sprang 
up,  the  most  notable  being  John  Wiclif,  in  Edward  III.'s 
reign,  by  whom,  for  the  first  time,  the  Scriptures  were 
translated  into  English.  He  lived  and  died  *  peacefully  at 
his  living  of  Lutterworth,  in  Leicestershire,  protected  by 
the  great  John  of  Gaunt.  But  his  followers,  nicknamed 
Lollards,  from  a  German  word,  lollen—io  sing,  underwent 
much  cruel  persecution. 

"At  last,  under  Henry  VHL,  the  measure  was  filled, 
the  Reformation  took  place,  and  the  Pope's  power  in 
England  was  thrown  off.  It  had  become  by  this  time  no 
kind  protection  as  at  first,  but  a  heavy  yoke,  too  grievous 
to  be  borne.  The  History  of  the  Reformation  is  a  study 
of  itself:  Mr.  Blunt's  useful  little  book  may  be  taken  as 
your  guide  on  the  matter.  It  is  too  complicated  to  be 
spukcn  of  here. 

"The  Reformers  set  to  work  with  such  vehemence  that 

•  A.D.  1384. 

H 


98         A  REVIEW  OF  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


moderate  men  like  Sir  Thomas  More  and  Erasmus,  who 
would  otherwise  have  joined  them,  were  alarmed.  Be- 
sides, the  work  was  chiefly  political.  The  clergy  had  no 
fair  play  in  their  efforts  for  reform.  The  monasteries 
were  despoiled,  the  Church  lands  were  taken  and  given 
to  greedy  nobles.  This  produced  sore  evils.  When  the 
monks  had  possessed  the  lands,  at  least  they  had  sent 
out  preachers  upon  them.  The  new  owners  let  the  churches 
fall  to  decay,  and  offered  to  the  clergy  stipends  too  small 
to  support  them,  especially  now  when  the  rule  of  celibacy 
or  single  life  was  no  longer  enforced,  and  a  poor  priest 
might  have  a  wife  and  family  to  drag  him  further 
down.  Now  that  the  monks  were  suppressed,  the  num- 
ber of  preachers  was  lessened  by  one-half.  Nor  did  the 
preachers  for  the  most  part  care  to  be  over  zealous  in 
teaching  reformed  doctrines  while  Mary,  Henrj-'s  eldest 
daughter,  was  a  Romanist,  and  the>'  might  look  again  for 
papal  rule.  They  preached  and  worked  as  little  as  they 
dared,  living  in  fear  of  unknown  evil  and  torture.  Most 
of  the  clergy,  in  the  country  especially,  were  now  ignorant 
men,  and  so  poor  as  to  be  forced  to  work  as  tailors  or 
carpenters,  to  eke  out  a  subsistence.  Some  even  kept  ale- 
houses. During  the  first  years  of  Elizabeth's  reign  the 
service  in  many  of  the  London  parishes  was  performed 
by  the  sexton,  and  in  very  many  vicarages,  some  of  them 
in  good  provincial  tovras,  the  people  were  forced  to  pro- 
vide themselves  as  they  could. 

"Piety  decreased  in  consequence,  and  England  was 
only  saved  from  the  entire  tyranny  of  the  Puritans  by 
the  quarrels  of  their  many  sects  with  one  another. 

"During  the  reigns  of  the  first  James  and  Charles, 
however,  an  excellent  body  of  reformed  clergy  grew  up, 
and  in  the  sad  days  of  the  Rebellion  proved  their  loyalty 
to  their  King  and  Church  by  suffering  themselves  to  be 


QUEEN  ANNE'S  BOUNTY.  99 

ejected  from  their  livings  rather  than  preach  the  doctrines 
which  ParHamcnt  then  tried  to  fence  upon  them. 

"  In  the  period  of  religious  fanaticism  under  Cromwell, 
and  later  still,  a  generation  grew  up  during  which  no  men 
had  been  educated  for  the  priesthood  except  on  sectarian 
principles.  Also  the  troublous  times  had  so  sadly  im- 
poverished the  Church  that  her  clergy,  as  a  body,  did  not 
recover  from  the  lowering  influences  of  their  training  and 
poverty  until  within  a  very  few  generations  of  the  present 
time.  The  weak  but  well-meaning  Queen  Anne  must  be 
honoured  for  the  fine  action  of  giving  up  the  Church 
property  usurped  by  the  Crown.  Of  this  we  retain  a 
memorial  in  the  Queen  Anne's  Bounty,  a  charity  for  lend- 
ing money  to  aid  the  poorer  clergy. 

"  Nevertheless,  the  Reformation,  though  falling  far  short 
in  aims  and  fulfilments  of  what  such  a  work  might  have 
been,  was  a  marvel  of  success,  considering  the  conflicting 
elements  employed  in  it.  German  Reformers,  who  had 
cast  off  some  of  the  very  essentials  of  Church  doctrine, 
greedy  nobles,  time-serving  statesmen,  zealous  clergy  of 
diverse  opinions — all  these  were  at  work  in  our  Reforma- 
tion. It  is,  then,  a  thing  to  be  very  grateful  for,  tliat 
while  the  intolerable  Roman  yoke  was  thrown  off,  Church 
discipline,  Church  symbolism,  Church  government,  and 
Church  doctrine  did  not  follow.  That  they  did  not  you 
will  see  as  we  proceed. 

"At  last,  with  this  century,  a  dawn  appeared.  The 
old  callous,  sluggish  days,  when  the  village  parson  was 
the  boon  companion  of  the  squire,  or  perhaps  of  a  lower 
class,  passed  by  for  ever,  let  us  hope.  Was  it  the  new 
spring  of  things  which  followed  on  the  spirit  of  the 
French  Revolution,  and  on  the  philosopliy  of  such  a 
thinker  as  Coleridge,  which  caused  this  new  zeal.?  It 
would  take  too  long  to  ask.    Already,  the  Evangelical 


lOO       A  REVIEW  OF  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


clergy  had  worked  well,  and  now  arose  such  men  as 

Keble  to  do  their  own  work  in  their  own  day  ;  and  at  the 
present  time  a  fresh  life  and  energy  are  growing  in  our 
dear  Mother  Church.  Let  us  use  them  as  a  gift  from  on 
High." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


**  TItey  that  in  private  by  themselves  alone 
Do  Pray^  may  take 
IV/tat  liberty  they  please. 
In  dtoosing  of  the  ways 
Wherein  to  make 
Their  souls  most  intimate  affections  knoi\  ii 
To  Him  that  sees  in  secret,  ivhen 
Tfwy're  most  concealed  from  other  men. 
**  But  he  that  unto  ot/ters  leads  tlte  way 
In  public  prayer. 
Should  clioose  to  do  it  so 
As  all  that  /tear  inay  know 
They  need  not  fear 
To  tu7ie  tJteir  ftearts  unto  his  tongue,  and  say 
Amen;  nor  dozibt  they  were  betrayed 
To  blaspheme  when  tliey  slwuld  Jiave  prayed. 
*'  Devotion  will  add  life  unto  tJte  letter y 
And  why  sfwuld  not 
That  which  authority 
Prescribes,  esteemed  be 
Advantage  got  ? 
If  tlie  prayer  be  good,  the  commoner  the  be.  ter; 
Prayer  in  tlie  Churches  words,  as  well 
As  seme,  of  all  prayers  bears  tJie  bell," 

Christopher  Harvie,  1640. 

'TP  HE  next  lesson  produced  a  grand  array  of  books  and 
notes,  and  was  given  in  the  dining-room,  where  all 
these  preparations  could  be  spread  out  on  the  large  table. 
Before  Joan's  place  were  pen,  ink,  and  blotting-paper, 
with  a  nice  little  new  Prayer-Book. 

"Now,  auuiie,  dear,"  she  said,  bkipping  in  at  the  ap- 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


pointed  time  (a  far  gayer  mode  of  motion  than  the  poor 
little  sickly  Joan  of  our  commencement  could  have  used), 
"  you  have  been  v  ery  busy  for  me  to-day,  I  see,  and  I  am 
ready  to  profit  by  it  all  immensely." 

"  Come  along  then,  dear,  for  we  have  hard  work  before 
us  this  morning :  no  play,  I  assure  you." 

"  What  have  we  to-day?" 

"  Our  own  dear  Prayer-Book." 

"  That  sounds  nice,  auntie :  what  am  I  to  learn  about 

"  Something  of  its  history  from  first  to  last." 

"  Oh !  I  am  glad.    That  will  be  interesting." 

"  Do  not  be  too  sure.  Interesting,  in  the  best  sense,  it 
should  be  to  any  daughter  of  the  Church;  but  in  the 
lighter  sense  it  is  not  interesting — there  is  too  much  detail 
and  too  little  anecdote  for  that." 

"  Never  mind,  if  1  learn  something." 

"That  is  the  right  spirit.  Now  to  the  work.  I  must 
begin  by  some  slight  account  of  ancient  liturgies,  which, 
in  an  earlier  lesson,  I  omitted.  Even  here  I  shall  make 
it  rather  a  few  statements  than  an  account. 

"  In  Greek,  then,  the  word  Liturgy  {leitourgid)  was 
used  to  express  any  great  public  service,  secular  or  re- 
ligious, paid  by  an  individual  to  the  State ;  in  the  New 
Testament  the  word  is  translated  'ministry'  or  'to  mi- 
nister,' as  in  Acts  xiii.  2.  In  a  Christian  sense  it  means 
strictly  only  the  highest  form  of  service  paid  by  Christians 
to  God — namely,  the  service  of  the  Holy  Communion; 
though  in  a  looser  sense,  it  is  now  often  used  to  express 
the  whole  of  the  offices  used  in  Divine  service. 

"  Thus,  when  we  name  the  Liturgies  of  St.  James,  St. 
Mark,  &c.,  we  mean  the  services  used  for  celebrating  the 
Holy  Eucharist  in  the  Churches  which  these  Saints 
founded.  The  Roman  Church  calls  the  service  the  Mass. 

% 


LITURGIES. 


103 


and  the  book  containing  it  the  Missal,  possibly  from  the 
words  Ite,  missa  esi'—'Go,  ye  are  dismissed,'  in  free 
translation — addressed  by  the  deacon  to  the  congregation 
at  the  conclusion  of  the  service. 

"  I  have  already  explained  to  you  at  some  length  *  the 
similarity  between  Christian  arid  old  Jewish  forms  of 
worship,  and  how  Christ  and  His  Apostles  consecrated 
the  latter  by  using  them.  We  also  find  in  the  Apostolic 
writings  slight  traces  of  set  forms,  as  in  Acts  ii.  42,  where 
the  original  says :  '  They  continued  stedfastly  in  the 
Apostles'  doctrine  and  fellowship,  auif  in  the  breaking  of 
bread,  and  in  the  prayers;'  evidently  intimating  the  Holy 
Communion. 

"St.  Paul  refers  to  some  religious  work  then  widely 
known  in  his  words :  '  This  is  a  faithful  saying,  and 
worthy  of  all  acceptation  :  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the 
world  to  save  sinners.'  (i  Tim.  i.  15.)    And  in 

"'Awake,  thou  that  sleepest, 
And  arise  from  the  dead. 
And  Christ  shall  give  thee  light,  '  t 

he  quotes  from  what  is  supposed  to  be  the  oldest  Chris- 
tian hymn.  Also  the  words  spoken  about  the  glories 
which  God  has  prepared  for  them  that  love  Him :  '  Eye 
hath  not  seen,  nor  ear  hath  heard,'  &c.  (i  Cor.  ii.  9)  are 
almost  word  for  word  in  the  Liturgy  of  St.  James  of  Jeru- 
salem, which  might  be,  and  probably  was,  in  use  at  this 
time. 

"  These  statements  (to  which  more  might  soon  be 
added)  are  enough  to  show  that  the  Apostles  had  at  least 
some  nucleus  of  a  liturgy." 

"  I  should  have  thought  that  the  earliest  writers  about 
Church  History  would  have  given  a  full  account  of  the 
services  of  the  Apostles." 

*  Ch.ipteriii       +  Ephesians  v.  14. 


I04 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"That  they  did  not  is  explained  by  the  danger  in 
which  the  early  Christians  stood  among  their  enemies, 
causing  them  to  commit  these  liturgies  to  memory  only, 
and  letting  none  but  those  baptized,  or  about  to  be  so, 
know  the  nature  of  their  sacraments.  I  have  given  you  * 
Justin  Martyi-'s  account  of  a  primitive  Sunday  service, 
but  even  from  him  we  get  nothing  clear  in  a  form  of 
words ;  and  when  Diocletian  (a.d.  303)  caused  search  to 
be  made  for  Christian  writings,  none  were  found.  One 
copy  would  probably  be  kept  of  these  works,  and  com- 
mitted to  memory." 

"  How  many  old  liturgies  were  there?" 

"  Many ;  but  the  four  chief  were  those  of  St.  James 
(in  Antioch  and  Jerusalem)  ;  St.  Mark  (of  Alexandria)  ; 
St.  Peter  (of  Rome) ;  and  St.  John  (of  Ephesus,  whence 
it  passed  into  Gaul).  From  this  last  our  first  British 
service-book  was  taken,  and  in  the  time  of  Augustine 
(sixth  century),  with  the  addition  of  a  few  alterations 
from  the  Roman  Liturgy,  it  became  that  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxons.  The  Norman  Conquest  brought  about,  in  a  few 
matters  (but  only  a  few),  greater  similarity  to  the  Roman 
forms  ;  and  about  1086  Bishop  Osmund,  of  Salisbury, 
drew  up  a  famous  Missal  in  conformity  with  the  more 
ancient  ones,  called  the  Sarum  Missal,  which  was  used 
in  the  English  Church  until  1548,  the  second  year  of 
King  Edward  VI. 

"Thus  you  see  that  we  have  always  had  a  certain 
insular  independence  in  our  Church,  while  also  retaining 
perfect  fellowship  with  ancient  and  universal  forms.  I 
trust  now  to  show  j'ou  that  our  Prayer-Book  as  it  stands 
is  worthy  of  all  honour — honour  second  only  to  that  due 
to  a  work  of  Divine  origin,  as  its  contents  are  choicely 
selected  from  the  best  and  oldest  sources. 

*  Page  33- 


PREFACES. 


"Now,  take  this  new  Prayer-Book,  and  write  in  it 
marginal  notes  as  I  give  them  to  you. 

"  We  open  at  a  blank  page,  which  you  will  find  useful. 


Take  a  fine  pen,  and  write  neatly  : — 

A.D. 

"  The  Sacramentary  of  St.  Leo        .       .       .  483 
,,  ,,         St.  Gelasius  .       .       .  494 

„  ,,         St.  Gregory  the  Great   .  590 


"These  are  three  sources  from  which,  as  you  will  see, 
many  of  our  finest  Collects  are  derived.  Write  under- 
neath the  following  facts  concerning  the  history  of  our 
Prayer-Book  ; — 

A.D. 

"The  First  Prayer-Book  used  on  Whit-Sunday  1549 
Second  or  Revised  Prayer-Book  used  in 

November  1552 

The  Articles  finally  Arranged  .  .  .  1571 
The  Prayer-Book  finally  Revised  .       .  .1661 

"The  meaning  of  these  dates  will  be  impressed  upon 
you  later. 

"We  now  turn  on,  and  come  first  to  the  Preface. 
Against  this  virite  : — 

"  By  Sanderson,  Bishop  of  Lincohi         ,       .  16C1 

"  Against  the  second  Preface,  headed,  '  Concerning  the 
Service  of  the  Church,'  write  the  date  1549.  And  now 
let  us  read  these  Prefaces  ;  they  will  give  us  a  clear 
notion  of  what  the  compilers  meant." 

They  then  read  them. 

"What  are  the  'unhappy  confusions'  spoken  of  here.^"' 
asked  Joan  in  the  course  of  the  second  paragrapli. 

"The  first  Revolution  and  Commonwealth,  during 
which  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  was  set  aside  by  law. 

*  In  studyin;^  thib  chapter,  the  reader  is  earnestly  requested  to  follow  in 
the  Prayer-Book  the  course  here  indicated. 


io6 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


'His  Majesty'  here  named  is  Charles  II.  ;  after  whose 
coronation,  in  1660,  the  last  revision  and  settlement  of 
the  book  at  once  took  place.  You  see,  as  you  read,  that 
the  revisers  had  no  easy  time,  but  were  beset  by  opposite 
parties  calling  for  concessions. 

"Preface  II.  is  really  the  earlier  by  a  century,  and  is 
directed,  you  see,  against  the  Roman  errors  which  caused 
the  Reformation.  For  instance,  it  speaks  of  the  service 
being  read  in  Latin,  against  which  i  Cor.  xiv.  seems  to 
decide,  and  of  the  Psalms  being  divided  into  portions,  to 
be  said  at  the  offices  for  the  canonical  hours.  These  were 
arranged  for  the  monks.  But  the  people,  by  this  means, 
never  heard  the  greater  part  of  the  Psalter,  if  indeed 
they  could  have  understood  it  in  Latin. 

"The  fifth  paragraph  of  Preface  I.  speaks  of  the 
many  different  customs  of  saying  the  service  in  different 
parts  of  England,  as  authorized  by  the  Bishops.  This 
was  certainly  an  evil,  as  we  may  conceive  by  thinking 
how  awkward  it  would  be  to  go  from  Salisbury  to  Here- 
ford, and  find  that  our  old  Prayer-Book  was  useless. 
Against  this  the  English  Prayer-Book  provided,  and  the 
Act  of  Uniformity,  passed  in  1549,  required  all  the 
English  clergy  to  use  this  book  and  no  other. 

"  In  the  second  detachment  of  the  second  Preface  we 
find  it  enjoined  upon  all  priests  and  deacons  'to  say  daily 
the  Morning  and  Evening  Prayer  either  privately  or 
openly.' " 

"  Does  that  mean  that  if  there  is  not  daily  service  at  a 
church,  the  clergyman  must  say  it  at  home  to  himself?" 

"  Yes  ;  not  being  let  or  hindered  by  sickness  or  some 
other  urgent  cause." 

"  Do  the  clergymen  do  it?" 

"  I  should  like  to  ask  some  of  them  that  question. 
There  are  many  who  do  :  all  honour  to  them  ! 


THE  CALENDAR. 


107 


"  The  chapter  on  ceremonies  is  most  valuable.  It  says 
all  that  can  be  said  on  the  subject. 

"  Some  of  the  notes  '  How  the  rest  of  Holy  Scripture 
is  to  be  read'  may  give  you  a  hint  or  two  which  some 
girls  require,  to  judge  by  the  vacant  looks  which  appear 
when  the  Psalms  or  Lessons  for  Special  Holy-days  are 
given  out. 

"We  now  read  the  pages  of  '  Proper  Lessons.'*  Here 
we  find  the  first  Lesson,  both  morning  and  evening,  for 
every  Sunday  in  the  year;  and  the  Holy-days  come  after. 
The  second  Lessons  are  generally  to  be  sought  in  the 
Calendar.  Then  comes  the  short  list  of  Special  Psalms 
for  Holy-days,  and  then  the  Calendar. 

"  There  is  something  which  strikes  many  persons  as 
incongruous  in  these  long  lists  preceding  our  prayers. 
The  notion  seems  to  have  struck  one  at  least  of  our  loyal 
Churchmen  in  another  country — Bishop  Coxe,  now  of 
New  York  ;  but  he  found  a  use  and  a  meaning  in  them, 
as  a  very  pretty  poem  of  his  testifies.  Here  it  is.  It  would 
do  you  good  to  learn  it : — 

THE  CALENDAR,  t 
I. 

•"My  Prayer- Book  is  a  casket  bright. 

With  gold  and  incense  stored, 
Which  every  day  and  every  night 

I  open  to  the  Lord. 
Vet  wlien  I  first  unclasp  its  lids, 

1  find  a  bunch  of  myrrh 
Embalming  all  our  mortal  life  ; 

The  Church's  Calendar. 

*  The  new  Lectionary,  generally  adopted  in  January,  1S72,  is  here  re- 
ferred to. 

t  The  word  Calendar  is  derived  from  Calciida;,  the  first  d.iy  of  the 
Roman  month. 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"  '  But  who  would  see  an  almanac 

When  opes  his  Book  of  Prayer? 
Of  all  the  leaves  between  its  lids, 

These  only  are  not  fair  I 
So  said  I  in  mv  thouRhtless  years ; 

But  now,  with  awe,  I  scan 
The  Calendar,  like  Sybil  leaves. 

That  tell  the  life  of  man. 

" '  God  set  the  sun  and  moon  for  signs  : 

The  Church  His  signs  doth  know  ; 
And  here,  while  sleeps  the  sluggish  world, 

She  marks  them  as  they  go. 
Here  for  His  coming  looks  she  forth 

As  for  her  spouse  the  bride  ; 
Here  at  her  lattice  faithfully 

She  waits  the  morning  tide. 

" '  All  time  is  hers,  and  at  its  end 

Her  Lord  shall  come  with  more. 
As  one  for  whom  all  time  was  made. 

Thus  guardeth  she  her  store  ; 
And  doating  o'er  her  letters  old. 

As  pores  the  wife  bereft. 
Thus  daily  reads  the  bride  of  Christ 

Each  message  He  has  left. 

"' As  prisoners  knotch  their  tally-stick. 

And  wait  the  far-off  day  ; 
So  marks  she  days,  and  months,  and  years. 

To  ponder  and  to  pray  ; 
And  year  by  year  beginning  new 

Her  faithful  task  sublime. 
How  lovingly  she  meteth  out 

Each  portion  in  its  time. 

VI. 

•"This  little  index  of  thy  life 

Thou  all  thy  life  shall  find. 
So  teaching  thee  to  tell  thy  days. 

That  wisdom  thou  mayst  mind. 
Oh,  live  thou  by  the  Calendar  ; 

And  when  each  morn  you  kneel. 
Note  how  the  numbered  days  go  by. 

Like  spokes  in  Time's  swift  wheel 


THE  CALENDAR. 


•"Wllh  this  thy  clos^-t  seek:  and  Icain 

What  strengthening  word  to-day 
From  out  the  Holy  Book  of  God 

Our  mother  woidd  display  ; 
And  know  thy  prayers  y:o  up  on  high. 

With  thousands  that,  iniknown. 
Are  lighted  at  the  self-same  fire, 

And  mingle  at  God',  throne. 


***For  so— thoiii^h  severed  far  on  earth — 
Together  v  e  arc  fed  ; 
And  onward,  though  we  see  it  not, 

Oh,  live  ye  by  the  Calendar, 

And  with  the  good  ye  dwell  ; 
The  spirit  that  comes  down  on  them 

Shall  lighten  you  as  well.* 

"  This  Calendar  was  at  various  times  altered  as  regards 
the  Saints'  days  enrolled  in  it.  It  now  contains  a  small 
selection  from  the  Latin  list,  which  had  one  for  every  day 
in  the  year  ;  the  saints  mentioned  in  the  Bible  are  retained, 
and  others,  as  for  instance  the  feasts  at  quarter-days — 
partly,  no  doubt,  in  order  that  the  marks  of  time  employed 
in  courts  of  law  might  be  understood,  and  that  the  old 
dates  of  parochial  festivities  and  fairs  might  be  retained ; 
but  partly  with  the  higher  object  of  perpetuating  the 
memory  of  ancient  Christian  worthies,  some  of  them 
connected,  or  supposed  to  be  connected,  with  the  English 
Church,  and  thereby  of  evincing  how  that  Church  was 
still  in  spirit  undissevered  from  the  national  Church  of 
earlier  years,  and  from  the  brotherhood  of  Catholic  Chris- 
tianity. 

"  Coming  now  to  the  real  '  Order  for  Morning  Prayer,' 
I  must  tell  you  that  our  services  were  compiled  from  the 
seven  services  appointed  for  the  monks.    The  Latin  ser- 

*  From  ChrisU.ti:  Itallads  and  Poems,  by  A.  C.  Coxii.  Parker. 


no 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


vice  was  altogether  a  service  for  monks  and  priests,  and 
not  for  the  people. 

The  book  containing  all  these  services  was  called 
Breviary,  from  ^r^wj— short,  the  older  services  having 
been  shortened  by  Gregory  VII.  (1073-1086.) 

"  Now,  in  rearranging  and  translating  the  prayers  for 
the  new  English  Prayer-Book  (which  was  begun  in  some 
sort  in  1 544,  by  the  publication  of  an  authorized  English 
Litany),  this  order  was  in  a  measure  retained,  by  keeping 
the  choicest  portions  from  all  and  so  uniting  them  as  to 
allow  of  a  secular  congregation  being  present  at  services 
which  could  represent  the  whole. 

"  We  will,  therefore,  write  Matins  against  the  heading 
'  Morning  Prayer,"  because  there  was  a  resemblance  be- 
tween that  ancient  service  and  the  early  part  of  ours. 
Matins  began  with  tlie  Lord's  Prayer.  The  Sentences, 
Exhortation,  Confession,  and  Absolution,  were  compiled 
and  placed  in  1552.  Therefore,  write  that  date  above 
the  Sentences.  The  term  general  confession  distinguishes 
this  from  the  private  confession  to  which  the  people  were 
accustomed. 

"You  observe  that  the  Amen  after  the  Confession  is  in 
ordinary  type,  while  after  the  Collects  it  is  in  italics.  The 
distinction  is,  that  where  the  priest  says  the  prayer,  and 
then  stops  for  the  people  to  add  Amen,  that  word  is 
printed  in  a  different  type  ;  whereas,  when  priest  and 
people  repeat  the  prayer  together,  as  in  the  Confession 
or  Lord's  Prayer,  this  change  is  not  necessary,  nor  is  it 
made.  You  observe  that  the  Absolution,  or  announce- 
ment of  God's  free  pardon  to  those  who  have  confessed 
their  sins,  is  ordered  to  be  said  'by  the  priest  alone.' 
This  is  not  merely  to  denote  that  the  people  are  to  re- 
main silent,  but  also  that  the  Absolution  is  to  be  pro- 
nounced by  a  priest,  not  a  deacon.    In  the  Prayer-Book 


MATINS. 


of  Edward  VI.  the  term  minister  alone  was  used  ;  but  at 
the  Savoy  Conference  (a  Conference  held  in  the  Savoy 
Hospital,  London,  under  Charles  II.)  in  1661,  the  word 
priest  was  substituted  for  it. 

"At  the  Lord's  Piayer  we  begin  the  Matins  proper. 
The  Versicles,  'O  Lord,  open  Thou  our  lips,'  (Ps.  li.) 
'And  our  mouth  shall  show  forth  thy  praise,'  also  follow 
in  Matins,  and  are  taken,  as  I  have  said  before,  from 
the  Jewish  service.*  '  O  God,  make  speed  to  save  us ' 
is  from  Ps.  Ixx. ;  note  that.  It  came  from  the  Anglo- 
Saxo7i  offices.  This  passage  from  '  O  Lord,  open  Thou,' 
to  'Praise  ye  the  Lord,'  is  verbatim  from  the  Sarum 
Breviary.  From  Easter  to  Trinity  Sunday  the  people 
answered  'Alleluia,'  till  i65i,  when  'The  Lord's  name  be 
praised"  was  inserted  from  the  Scotch  Prayer-Book.  t 
Date  the  response." 

Joan  obeyed,  neatly  writing  her  notes  in  small  text  in 
the  margin,  or  any  handy  little  corner  among  the  printed 
words. 

"The  Psalm  Venite  has  been  sung  for  many  ages  in 
the  Western  Church.  It  used  to  be  preceded  by  a 
sentence  called  the  Invitatory  ;  as  for  instance  :  '  Behold 
the  king  cometh.  Let  us  run  towards  our  salvation.' 
And  this  was  repeated  in  part,  or  wholly,  after  each  verse. 
In  1549  it  was  discontinued,  probably  to  shorten  the 
service. 

"The  Psalms  here  follow,  as  had  been  for  very  long 
the  custom.  But  they  had  been  divided  into  portions,  so 
as  to  be  read  through  every  week,  and  thus  persons  who 

*  A  True  Portrait  of  the  Primitive  Church.    By  Rev.  E.  D.  Cree. 

+  A  Prayer-Book  drawn  up  by  the  Scottish  Bishops  in  the  time  of  Charles 
I.  It  differed  somewhat  from  the  English  Prayer-book,  but  received  the 
sanction  of  Archbishop  Laud,  and  was  ordered  to  be  used  in  Scotland, 
1637.  It  was  received  with  such  a  storm  of  abuse,  however,  that  it  became 
a  dead  letter. 


112  THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


could  not  be  daily  in  church  would  have  missed  almost 
the  whole,  had  the)'  not  now  been  spread  over  the  month. 

"  The  custom  of  singing  the  Psalms,  and  singing  them 
antiphonally,  is  taken  from  the  Jewish  service." 

"  I  forget  what  antiphonally  means." 

"  It  means  that  the  verses  are  taken  by  alternate  sides 
of  the  choir.  This  rests  the  voices,  and  is  by  far  the  best 
way  of  singing  long  canticles." 

"  I  have  noticed,  aunt,  that  the  Psalms  are  not  ahke  in 
the  Bible  and  the  Prayer-Book.    How  is  that  ?" 

"The  subject  is  mentioned  in  the  part  of  the  Preface 
concerning  the  Psalter.  The  Psalms  in  the  Prayer-Book 
are  from  a  translation  made  by  the  Bishops  and  others, 
in  1540,  and  called  'The  Great  Bible;'  our  present 
English  Bible  having  been  translated  in  1609.  But  the 
choirs  had  grown  used  to  singing  the  old  version,  and  as 
in  many  places  it  is  the  finer  of  the  two,  it  was  not 
changed. 

"  The  Gloria  was  ordered  to  be  said  after  each  Psalm, 
A.D.  1549.  Note  that.  By  this  declaration  of  belief  in 
the  Trinity,  whom  the  Jews  darkly  worshipped,  we  turn 
their  hymns  into  expressions  of  Christian  prayer  and 
faith." 

"  Why,"  asked  Joan  here,  "  do  you  all  at  St.  Salvadoi-'s 
bow  at  the  Gloria  ?" 

"To  show  honour  to  the  Most  Holy  Trinity.  It  is 
enjoined  by  an  old  canon  of  the  English  Church. 

"  Here  pause  to  see  with  what  wise  intention  the  whole 
has  been  hitherto  framed.  When  we  enter  the  church,  we 
are  as  yet,  with  impressions  of  the  outer  world  still  fresh 
upon  us,  hardly  fit  for  immediate  prayer.  We  are  there- 
fore called  upon,  first  by  the  Sentences  and  then  by  the 
Exhortation,  to  listen  and  join  with  lowly,  earnest  hearts. 
Then  we  fall  down  before  God  and  tell  Him  that  we  feel 


"3 


ourselves  utterly  unworthy  to  come  into  His  Courts,  and 
yet  know  that  we  may  plead  for  pardon  through  the 
Saviour.  The  Absolution  gives  us  the  sense  of  cleansing 
by  which  alone  we  dare  to  approach  our  Maker's  footstool. 
The  Psalms  lift  up  our  hearts  in  the  inexpressible  joy  of 
poetry  and  music.  Then  comes  the  reading  of  the  law, 
and  then,  heralded  in  by  the  historical  epic-hymn  of  the 
Te  Deian,  comes  the  sweet  word  of  the  Gospel,  the  still 
small  voice,  deeper  than  any  tempest  roar  of  Sinai,  com- 
prehending and  summing  up  all  God's  message  to  men, 
which  began  to  be  uttered  when  the  worlds  were  made. 

"  Wc  must  not  pass  over  the  Te  Deitm.  A  fanciful 
history  is  given  to  it,  viz.,  that  when  St.  Augustine,  after- 
wards Bishop  of  Hippo  (a.D.  388),  went  to  St.  Ambrose, 
Bishop  of  Milan,  to  be  baptized  by  him,  the  two  holy 
men,  with  the  inspiration  of  zeal  upon  them,  improvised 
it  verse  by  verse.  This,  however,  is  purely  legendary. 
The  hymn,  as  at  present  written,  was  probably  composed 
in  the  fourth  or  fifth  century,  St.  Hilary  of  Poictiers, 
Hilary  of  Aries,  or  Nicetius  of  Treves,  having  been  named, 
with  others,  as  the  authors ;  but  it  seems  to  have  had  an 
original  of  a  much  earlier  date. 

"The  Te  Dcitm  is  divided  into  three  parts.  Verses 
l-io,  express  universal  praise ;  1 1-19,  a  confession  of  faith ; 
20-29,  prayer  for  all  God's  people  and  for  ourselves. 

"The  Bencdicite,  sometimes  used  instead  of  the  Te 
Deum,  is  part  of  the  Greek  addition  to  Daniel  iii.,  and  is 
an  enlargement  on  the  148th  Psalm.  It  was  used  as  a 
hymn  in  the  Jewish  Church." 

Joan  wrote  against  the  Te  Deum  its  probable  author- 
ship and  the  division  of  meaning.  Against  the  Denedicite 
she  wrote,  "  Paraphrase  of  Psalm  148. 

"  When  is  the  Bencdicite  to  be  used  instead  of  the  Te 
Deum?"  asked  Juan. 


114 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"There  is  no  rule,  though  in  1549  it  was  ordered  to  be 
so  sung  in  Lent,  being  taken  from  the  Old  Testament.  On 
Septuagesima  Sunday,  the  Benedicite  seems  appropriate 
to  the  first  Lesson,  viz.,  Genesis  i. 

"The  second  Lesson  and  Beneditiiis,  or  prophesy  of 
Zacharias  (St.  Luke  i.  68-79),  represent  the  service  of 
Lauds;  this  hymn,  among  the  earliest  Christian  hymns, 
describes  our  joy  at  the  '  good  news '  which  we  have  just 
been  hearing. 

"The  Jubilate,  or  looth  Psalm,  which  follows,  was 
placed  there  to  be  read  when  the  Benedictus  should  come 
in  the  course  of  the  Lessons,  and  this  is  really  the  only 
time  when  it  should  be  employed,  though  for  some  reason 
it  seems  to  have  slipped  into  general  use. 

"  Here  we  reach  the  office  of  Prime,  according  to  a 
very  old  custom,  the  Creed  following  on  the  Psalms, 
Lessons,  and  Canticles.  And  what  more  natural  than 
that  we  should  here,  as  one  being,  having  together  heard 
God's  will  and  promises,  rise  and  declare  our  faith  in 
Him? 

"  This  Creed  is  called  the  Apostles'.   You  know  why  ?" 

"  Because  the  twelve  are  said  to  have  drawn  it  up  before 
leaving  Jerusalem  for  their  missions." 

"  Right.  We  find  ancient  accounts  attributing  a  certain 
clause  to  each  Apostle,  but  they  cannot  be  relied  on,  nor 
even  can  this  account  of  the  Creed's  authorship  by  the 
Apostles  receive  implicit  credence." 

"  Dear  aunt,  is  it  necessary  to  bow  at  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ  here?  Some  of  my  school-fellows  disliked 
it." 

"  Surely  any  religious  views  which  make  us  dislike  to 
show  a  sign  of  reverence  at  our  Saviour's  name  must 
have  something  wrong  in  them.  But  I  own,  the  custom 
of  bowing  ojily  here  is  not  very  well  founded." 


THE  APOSTLES'  CREED. 


"  A  verse  in  the  Bible  was  once  shown  to  me  which 
seemed  to  command  it." 

"  You  mean  Philippians  ii.  9,  lo :  '  Wherefore  God  also 
hath  highly  exalted  Him,  and  given  Him  a  name  which 
is  above  every  name,  that  ai  the  name  of  Jesus  every 
knee  should  bow.' " 

"Yes,  that  is  it." 

"  But  why  bow  in  the  Creed  only  ?" 
"  Certainly,  I  cannot  say." 

"  Besides  which,  the  meaning  of  the  original  is  that  all 
creatures  should  bow  the  knee,  that  is,  address  prayers  to 
God,  in  the  name,  that  is,  in  the  faith,  of  Jesus." 

"  Should  we  not  bow,  then  ?" 

"On  the  contrary,  we  should  bow — a  canon  of  1603 
commands  it,  but  we  weaken  our  cause  by  quoting  that 
verse  for  our  plea.  Let  us  say  that  it  is  an  old  and  good 
custom,  appropriate  everywhere  (I  like  to  see  at  least  the 
head  bent  whenever  Jesus  is  named  ;  though  the  action 
may  be  slight,  to  avoid  affectation),  and  specially  appro- 
priate when  we  are  declaring  our  belief  that  He  is  God's 
only  Son,  our  Lord." 

"  Should  we  bow  at  the  name  Christ  ?  " 

"  No  ;  at  that  of  Jesus." 

"Why  !    Does  not  Christ  mean  Anointed?" 

"  Yes  ;  but  Jesus  is  the  human  name,  and  in  bowing 
when  speaking  it  we  show  that  we  know  Him  to  be  not 
only  man  but  God  too." 

"  I  see  that  at  St.  Salvador's  they  turn  to  the  east  also 
when  repeating  the  Creed." 

"  Does  that  seem  to  you  superstitious  ?" 

"  I  have  heard  people  call  it  so,  auntie  ;  but  I  don't 
know  what  to  think.    Ought  every  one  to  do  it  ?" 

"  There  is  no  otight  in  the  matter.  It  is  but  a  piece  of 
symbolism." 


Il6 


"Symbolism?" 

"The  system  of  signs.  It  is  an  old  custom,  meaning 
that  we  turn  to  Christ  our  Sun  and  Light,  as  we  turn  to 
the  created  sun  rising  in  the  East.  The  sun  rising  after 
having  sunk  to  rest  some  hours  before  has  also  been 
constantly  taken  as  a  sign  of  the  resurrection  from  the 
dead  ;  and  tradition  says  our  Lord  will  come  from  the 
east  at  His  second  advent,  and  so  we  turn  to  that  quartei 
when  reciting  our  Christian  belief.  And  for  a  third 
reason,  it  is  a  remembrance  of  the  ancient  Church  ;  for 
the  Jews,  wherever  they  were,  turned  towards  Jerusalem 
when  they  prayed.  Practically,  it  is  useful  in  awakening 
attention,  which  will  flag,  do  what  we  may.  Here  are 
some  pretty  lines  which  you  may  find  useful  : — 

" '  And  the  glory  of  the  Lord  came  into  the  house  by 
the  way  of  the  gate  whose  prospect  is  toward  the  east.' 
(Ezek.  xliii.  4.) 

I. 

"  '  I  turn  to  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed, 
And  this  for  reasons  three  ; 
Fir^t,  Holy  Church  hath  practised  it, 
And  she's  a  guide  for  me. 

II. 

**  '  I  turn  to  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed, 
For  thence  the  rising  sun 
Through  thousand  circling  months  and  years 
His  ceaseless  course  hath  run. 

"  *  I  turn  to  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed, 
And  my  Redeemer  bless. 
Who  rose  on  our  benighted  earth, 
'  The  Sun  of  Righteousness'* 

"  '  I  turn  to  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed. 
And  look  for  my  final  doom ; 
For  thence  the  Scriptures  seem  to  speak 
The  Risrhteous  Judge  shall  come. 

*  Mai.  iv.  2. 


"7 


"*I  turn  tn  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed; 
My  reasons  I  have  given. 
But  not  my  eye  alone,  my  henrt 
Must  turn  itself  towards  Heaven. 

"'So  I  turn  to  the  east  when  I  say  the  Creed, 
And  tell  me  now,  I  pray, 
Why  any  humble  Christian  need 
To  turn  the  other  way.' 

F.  M.  K. 

"  It  is  not  necessary  to  examine  or  explain  the  Apostles' 
Creed  in  detail  in  this  place  ;  we  shall  do  so  when  we 
consider  the  Church  Catechism  ;  but  concerning  the 
clause,  '  I  believe  in  the  communion  of  Saints,'  I  should 
like  to  read  a  fine  passage  by  Archbishop  Manning, 
which  clearly  sets  forth  the  glory  of  that  doctrine  : — 

'"The  unity  of  the  Saints  on  earth  with  the  Church 
unseen  is  the  closest  band  of  all.  Hell  has  no  power 
over  it ;  sin  cannot  blight  it ;  schism  cannot  rend  it ; 
death  itself  can  but  knit  it  more  strongly.  Nothing  is 
changed  but  the  relation  of  sight ;  like  as  when  the  head 
of  a  far-stretching  procession,  winding  through  a  broken 
hollow  land,  hides  itself  in  some  bending  wall,  it  is  still 
all  one,  all  advancing  together ;  they  that  are  farthest 
onward  in  the  way  are  conscious  of  their  lengthened 
following  ;  they  that  linger  with  the  last  are  drawn  for- 
ward, as  it  were,  by  the  attraction  of  the  advancing  mul- 
titude.' 

"Now  comes  the  salutation,  'The  Lord  be  with  you,' 
and  the  response,  '  And  with  thy  spirit,'  which  always 
strike  me  afresh  in  their  sweet  friendliness,  and  which  are 
so  ancient  as  to  be  almost  Apostolic  in  origin.  Indeed, 
this  salutation  much  resembles  Christ's  '  Peace  be  with 
you.'  Then  the  three  Sentences,  '  Lord,  have  mercy  upon 
us,'  &c.,  which  are  called  the  Lesser  Litany,  and  give  the 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


key-note  to  the  prayers,  as  the  Gloria  did  to  the  praise. 
Indeed,  it  is  at  all  times  a  most  fitting  introduction  to  the 
Lord's  Prayer.  The  Sentences  are  also  called  the  Kyrie, 
from  the  Greek  word  '  Lord  ! '  {Kurios),  with  which  they 
begin.  Then  the  Lord's  Prayer  again.  Then  these  Ver- 
sides,  as  they  are  called,  taken  from  the  Salisbury  Book, 
the  one  'Give  peace  in  our  time,  O  Lord!'  with  its  re- 
sponse, being  chosen  and  placed  in  1549. 

"  The  Collect  for  the  day  used  to  be  said  in  the  old 
offices  at  the  end  of  Lauds. 

"  PrijHc  is  represented  by  the  Collects  for  Peace  and 
Grace,  which  latter  used  to  be  said  at  the  end  of  that 
service.  The  Collect  for  Peace  is  from  the  Sacramentary, 
or  Book  of  the  Sacraments,  compiled  under  St.  Gelasius 
(whose  date  you  wrote  on  your  blank  page),  and  that  for 
Grace  comes  from  the  Sacramentary  of  Gregory  and  the 
Anglo-Saxon  book  compiled  by  our  St.  Augustine,  who 
chose  many  fine  things  from  his  Master's  Prayer-Book. 

"Here,  until  1661,  the  Morning  Prayer  ended.  The 
present  custom  of  going  on  to  the  Litany  or  other  prayers 
began  in  the  Scotch  Prayer-book  of  1637,  which  differed 
somewhat  from  ours." 

"  Auntie,  do  you  know,  I  feel  puzzled  by  all  these  dates 
of  changes.  Can  you  give  me  any  easy  account  of  them 
to  remember?" 

"  Not  an  easy  one,  for  the  whole  account  will  be  dry 
dates.  But  I  shall  give  you  one  in  time.  I  defer  it, 
thinking  that  our  notes  will  awaken  interest,  and  sei-ve  as 
pegs  to  hang  your  dates  on.  We  will  finish  the  course 
of  the  Prayer-Book,  and  then  I  promise  you  some  small 
history  of  it. 

"  The  prayer  for  the  Queen's  (or  King's)  Majesty  does 
not  seem  older  than  the  reign  of  Henry  VHL 

"  The  prayer  for  the  Royal  Family  was  probably  com- 


EVENING  PRAYER. 


119 


posed  by  Archbishop  Whitgift,  and  placed,  in  1604,  by 
the  desire  of  James  I. 

"  The  prayer  for  clergy  and  people  ie  from  the  Sacra- 
mentary  of  Gelasius. 

"  The  prayer  of  St.  Chrysostom  is  from  the  Liturgies  of 
SS.  Basil  and  Chrysostom,  but  we  cannot  be  sure  that 
either  of  them  wrote  it.  Remember  that.  It  was  placed 
here  in  1661,  and  at  the  end  of  the  Litany  in  1554. 

"The  Benediction,  as  its  heading  tells  us,  is  from  St. 
Paul. 

"  We  now  reach  the  Evening  Prayer.  As  the  Morning 
Service  represents  Matins,  Lauds,  and  Prime,  so  does 
this  represent  Vespers  and  Compline.  There  is  much 
similarity  between  the  services.  The  Canticles  differ.  The 
Magnificat,  or  Song  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  has  been  sung 
at  vespers  in  the  English  Church  for  at  least  800  years. 
In  the  East,  it  was  sung  in  the  morning.  It  is  specially 
to  be  used  as  a  hymn  of  thanksgiving  for  the  Incarnation. 
It  follows  the  Old  Testament  Lesson,  to  witness  to  the 
fulfilment  of  the  early  promises ;  and  Simeon's  Nunc 
Dimittis,  '  Lord,  now  lettest  Thou  Thy  servant  depart  in 
peace,'  coming  after  the  Lesson  from  the  New  Testament, 
expresses  our  sense  of  rest  on  Christ,  as  the  Dens  Mise- 
reaiur  expresses  our  triumph  in  Him.  The  Nzmc  Dimittis 
has  been  used  as  an  Evening  Canticle  from  the  earliest 
ages.  Notice  that  all  the  New  Testament  Canticles  come 
from  the  Gospel  of  St.  Luke. 

"  Pass  on  to  the  Collect  for  Peace,  from  the  Sacramen- 
tary  of  Gelasius. 

"That  for  Aid  against  Perils,  from  the  same.  And 
now  we  have  the  Athanasian  Creed." 

"  That  was  written  by  St.  Athanasius?  I  can  guess  that." 

"  It  is  not  certain.  Many  suppose  it  to  have  been  writ- 
ten by  Hilary,  Bishop  of  Aries,  or  Vitricius,  of  Rouen, 
A.D.  401." 


120 


"Then  why  is  it  called  the  Athanasian  Creed?" 

"  Because  it  was  written  to  put  forth  the  faith  in  un- 
mistakably clear  language  against  the  errors  of  the  sect 
of  Arians,  whom  Athanasius  so  zealously  opposed,  that  the 
Creed,  or  hymn,  as  it  rather  was,  received  his  name. 

"  Athanasius  was  one  of  the  bravest  men  the  world  has 
ever  seen.  I  must  interrupt  the  course  of  our  lesson  to 
tell  you  a  little  about  him. 

The  notorious  Arius  (fourth  century)  was  a  man  of 
attractive  appearance  and  great  talent,  who  held  the 
theological  belief  that  the  Father  existed  before  either  the 
Son  or  the  Spirit.  This  doctrine,  which  Scripture  refutes, 
and  which  leads  to  worse  consequences  than  you  might 
fancy,  was  opposed  by  no  one  so  unflinchingly  as  by 
Athanasius,  secretary  to  the  Bishop  of  the  great  city  of 
Alexandria.  When  that  Bishop  died,  the  city  clamoured 
for  Athanasius.  He  fled  from  the  honour  and  hid  himself, 
but  was  found  and  elected  Bishop  when  only  thirty  years 
old,  A.D.  326. 

"The  great  Emperor  Constantine  (who  did  not  enter 
into  theological  disputes,  but  desired  peace  among  his 
Christian  subjects)  commanded  Athanasius  to  receive 
Arius  into  his  communion.  He  refused  :  the  Emperor, 
whose  nod  carried  laws,  favours,  or  instant  death  to  the 
farthest  known  countries,  was  foiled  by  a  Christian  Bishop. 
Henceforth,  the  life  of  Athanasius  was  one  long  struggle; 
his  enemies,  the  Arians,  for  ever  seeking  his  ruin.  Maybe 
he  was  too  stern  :  perhaps  some  concession  might  have 
brought  good  in  other  ways.  But  yet  we  dare  not  say 
that  a  man  should  for  any  cause  give  up  the  true  doctrines 
of  faith. 

"  The  devices  of  the  Arians  were  strange.  Once  they 
produced  a  dead  hand,  which  they  averred  to  be  that  of 
an  heretical  Bishop,  whom  they  declared  to  have  been 


ATHANASIUS. 


121 


murdered  by  Athanasius.  The  friends  of  the  latter  dis- 
covered beyond  doubt  that  the  Bishop  Arsenius  was 
hving  in  concealment.  Even  yet  the  charge  was  not 
abandoned.  At  last  a  council  was  assembled,  and  Athan- 
asius summoned  to  appear  and  answer  to  a  mixed  charge 
— 1st,  of  murdering  Arsenius  ;  2nd,  of  keeping  his  dead 
hand  for  purposes  of  magic.  The  council  met ;  the 
charge  was  laid  ;  the  hand  produced.  Athanasius  calmly 
asked  if  any  persons  present  had  known  Arsenius.  Some 
had.  A  man  wrapped  in  a  mantle  was  then  led  forth  ; 
and  when  the  hood  was  removed,  he  was  seen  to  be 
Arsenius  himself  The  Arians,  foiled  here,  declared 
then  that  Athanasius  had  caused  his  hand  to  be  cut  off. 
Quietly  lifting  up  first  the  right,  then  the  left  hand  of 
Arsenius,  Athanasius  calmly  said  that  the  Creator  had 
bestowed  two  hands  on  man  ;  it  was  for  his  enemies  to 
explain  how  Arsenius  had  possessed  a  third.  By  a  lucky 
accident,  the  friends  of  Athanasius  had  discovered  Ar- 
senius, and  thus  for  once  the  Bishop's  enemies  were 
confounded. 

"  But  not  for  long.  Another  charge  (that  of  sacrilege) 
was  brought,  and  Athanasius  was  deposed.  Meeting  the 
Emperor  as  he  rode  along,  the  Bishop  cried  to  him, 
'  God  shall  judge  between  thee  and  me,'  and  demanded  a 
hearing  before  himself  Constantine  could  not  but  admit 
it ;  but  when  the  trial  came  on,  the  enemies  of  Athanasius 
persuaded  the  Emperor  to  believe  that  he  had  threatened 
to  stop  the  supplies  of  corn  which  went  from  Alexandria 
to  Rome.  This  was  alarming ;  and  Athanasius  was 
banished  to  Treves. 

"  Arius  died  shortly  after,  by  a  sudden  death  ;  but 
Constantine  gave  his  favour  no  more  to  Athanasius.  The 
Emperor's  proud,  determined  spirit  recoiled  from  the 
determination  of  the  great  Bishop.    Nor,  when  the  Em- 


122 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


peror  died,  being  baptized  a  Christian  on  his  death-bed, 
did  his  son  Constantius  love  his  father's  opponent,  though 
he  listened  to  a  bold  appeal,  and  recalled  him  to  his 
diocese  of  Alexandria  (a.d.  340).  But  not  a  year  had 
passed  before  Arians  and  Athanasians  were  fighting  in 
the  streets  of  Alexandria,  and  the  Bishop  fled— this  time 
to  Rome.  Here  Constans,  another  son  of  Constantine, 
and  inheritor  of  the  Western  Empire,  sheltered  the  exile. 
Wherever  he  went,  indeed,  we  find  men  honouring  him 
with  a  deep  and  zealous  love.  He  was  one  of  those  who 
had  true  friends  and  inveterate  enemies. 

"  Nine  years  passed,  and  a  change  had  taken  place.  In 
three  letters,  Constantius  implored  Athanasius  to  return 
to  Alexandria.  He  did  so.  People  crowded  along  his  path ; 
incense  was  burned  in  the  streets  ;  houses  were  illumi- 
nated ;  large  alms  were  given  to  the  poor  ;  thanksgi\'ings 
to  God  resounded  in  every  house." 

"  What  could  have  made  the  Emperor  change  so  sud- 
denly ?" 

"  It  was  said  that  some  ill  conduct  of  the  Arians  opened 
his  eyes  to  their  errors  ;  but  more  probably  his  reasons 
were  political  Certainly  the  change  was  not  lasting.  In 
351,  only  two  years  later,  Constantius,  during  the  great 
battle  of  Mursa,  retired  to  a  neighbouring  church  to  pray 
for  success,  and  was  there  joined  by  Valens,  the  Bishop, 
who  was  an  Arian.  By  a  bold  invention,  or  by  some  rapid 
information,  he  was  able  loudly  to  declare  to  the  Emperor, 
while  on  his  knees,  that  his  prayers  were  granted ;  and 
soon  the  news  of  success  arrived.  The  fickle  Constantius 
was  now  once  more  brought  under  Arian  influence,  and 
in  a  few  years'  time  (not  sooner)  he  again  banished  Athan- 
asius. Five  thousand  soldiers  poured  at  midnight  into 
the  church  where  the  Bishop  was  reciting  the  service. 
He  continued  unmoved,  and  amidst  a  shower  of  arrows 


ATHANASIUS. 


123 


calmly  exhorted  his  flock  to  courage.  But  some  of  them 
hurried  him  out  by  a  secret  passage,  his  disappearance 
seeming  miraculous  to  the  crowd,  and  he  escaped  to  the 
deserts  of  Egypt,  where  for  many  years  he  lived,  as  devout 
among  the  hermit  followers  of  St.  Anthony  in  those  wilds, 
as  he  had  been  bold  before  the  princes  in  their  Courts. 
From  thence  he  sent  his  writings,  or  even  went  forth 
himself  in  secret,  to  animate  his  followers  to  stedfastness. 
He  did  not  remain  always  in  these  solitudes,  but  died 
at  last,  after  a  Jiftli.  exile,  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  see, 
A.D.  373"* 

"  A  wonderful  life  indeed  !  But,  aunt,  how  wild  and 
warlike  it  was,  and  I  do  not  see  the  reason  for  it  all." 

"  I  have  told  you  the  Arian  dogma." 

"  Yes,  but  would  our  Lord  have  wished  his  honour  to 
be  battled  for  so 

"  Remember  first  that  it  was  chiefly  the  others  who 
made  war  on  Athanasius,  not  he  on  them ;  and  then, 
since  it  seems  that  wars  must  be,  I  own  a  war  for  religion, 
unseemly  as  it  is,  appears  to  me  nobler  than  a  war  for 
money  or  land." 

'  Milman's  History  of  Christianity,  vols.  ii.  and  iii. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


(STfie  ^nanttJ^acik—coniiiiued. 

"  Though  private  prayer  be  a  brave  design^ 
Yet  public  hath  more  promiseSy  more  hue, 
Attd  love 's  a  ivcii^ht  to  Juarts,  to  eyes  a  sis:n. 

We  all  arc  but  cold  suitors — let  us  move 
Where  it  is  -.uarmest.    Leave  thy  six  and  severly 
Pray  with  tlic  jiiost,/or  lulu-re  viost  pray  is  heaven.^ 

George  Herbert. 

""\^E  now  come  to  the  Litany,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  sitting 
down  before  her  books.  "There  had  been  English 
Litanies  since  about  1400  in  a  book  called  the  Prymer  or 
Primer  (from /r/;«<?,  .Saxon, meaning  the  first  lessons 
on  religion)." 

"Were  they  read  in  English  in  the  churches?" 

"  No,  indeed.  Litanies  were  chiefly  used  in  open-air 
processions,  and  first  began  in  Vienne,  in  France  (460), 
to  be  used  on  regular  fixed  days." 

"Was  nothing  ever  read  in  English  in  the  churches 
before  the  Reformation?" 

"  Yes,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  churches  (that  is  between 
Augustine's  coming,  a.d.  596,  and  that  of  William  L, 
A.D.  1066)  the  Lord's  Prayer,  the  Creed,  and  part  of  the 
Psalms  were  sung  or  read  in  the  native  tongue.  The 
hymns  and  prayers  were  in  Latin,  and  when  the  Nor- 
mans came  this  language  usurped  the  whole  of  the 
sei'vice.    The  conquerors  took  the  best  things  of  the 


THE  LITANY. 


125 


soil  to  themselves,  and,  not  content  with  that,  must 
needs  have  the  public  worship  too. 

"The  form  of  the  Litany,  i.e.  short  petitions  mixed 
with  responses,  was  known  in  the  East  from  the  earliest 
times,  and  from  the  fifth  century  in  the  West.  Our 
Litany  was  intended  to  be  a  separate  service,  and  was 
printed  separately  in  Henry  VIlI.'s  time.  It  was  not  till 
1571  that  Grindall,  a  noted  Archbishop  of  York,  ordered  it 
to  be  said  in  the  present  order, — Morning  Prayer,  Litany, 
Communion  Service.  It  was  an  unfortunate  injunction, 
for  certainly  the  length  of  our  service  keeps  many  away 
from  Church. 

"  It  was  placed  as  now  in  1552,  and  ordered  to  be  said 
on  Sundays,  Wednesdays,  and  Fridays.  Underline  those 
words  in  the  rubric,  and  put  the  date  against  them." 

"  The  rubric,  aunt  ?" 

"  That  is,  the  directions.  All  the  directions,  now  printed 
in  italics,  are  so  called,  because  they  were  originally 
printed  in  red  (from  rtiber,  Latin,  red).  This  custom  is 
now  revived. 

"The  greater  part  of  our  Litany  is  from  the  ancient 
Latin  one.  The  Sarum  Litany  began,  like  ours,  with 
'  God  the  Father  of  Heaven,  have  mercy  upon  us.'  Then, 
'  O  Lord,  be  propitious' — Response  : — 'Spare  us,  O  Lord.' 
And  then,  in  short  phrases,  what  we  combine,  with 
additions.  For  example  :—' From  every  evil  deliver  us, 
O  Lord.'  'From  the  crafts  of  the  devil  deliver  us,  O 
Lord.'  'From  the  pest  of  pride  deliver  us,  O  Lord.' 
And  so  on,  all  in  short  petitions,  down  to, '  O  Lamb  of 
God  that  takest  away  the  sins  of  the  world,  have  mercy 
upon  us.' 

"  The  first  prayer,  '  Remember  not.  Lord,  our  offences,' 
was  originally  a  Collect  standing  in  the  Breviary  just 
before  the  Litany.    It  was  placed  as  now  in  1544. 


126 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"Now  write  a  foot-note  that  all  these  petitions  were 
chosen  by  Cranmer,  1544,  from  the  old  English  Litany 
and  Hermanfi's  Consultation." 

"What  is  that?" 

"It  is  a  book  of  public  prayers  compiled  for  Arch- 
bishop Hermann  of  Cologne  by  the  Continental  Reformers, 
Melancthon  and  Bucer,  1543. 

"  The  introduction  of  the  Gloria  in  the  midst  of  sup- 
plications is  very  striking.  '  It  witnesses  to  the  duty  and 
the  happiness  of  glorifying  God  at  aU  times  and  under  all 
circumstances.*  The  Versicles  which  follow  are  from  an 
addition  to  the  Litany  formerly  used  in  time  of  war. 

"The  Prayers  and  Thanksgivings  may  be  noted  as 
Modern  English,  except  that  beginning  :  '  O  God,  whose 
nature  and  property,'  which  you  must  note  from  the 
Prymer  and  Sacramentary  of  Gregory.  The  prayer  for 
the  Parliament  was  written  by  Archbishop  Laud,  and 
placed  at  the  last  revision  of  the  Prayer-Book  in  1661. 
Does  anything  strike  you  as  noteworthy  in  this  author- 
ship?" 

"  Was  not  Laud  a  friend  of  Charles  I.  ?" 
"Yes.    And  died — how?" 
"  He  was  beheaded." 

"  By  that  very  Parliament  for  which  he  prayed  so  well. 
He  was  executed  January  10,  1645.  I  prize  this  prayer 
of  his  as  a  beautiful  fulfilment  of  the  command  :  '  Pray 
for  them  that  despitefully  use  you  and  persecute  you.» 
(St.  Matt.  V.  44.)  The  prayer  for  all  conditions  of  men 
was  composed  by  Bishop  Gunning  in  Charles  II.'s  reign." 

"  Among  these  prayers  is  one  thing  I  do  not  understand, 
aunt.    What  are  Ember  Days  ?" 

"  Prayers  for  the  choice  of  fit  ministers,  to  be  said 
during  the  weeks  of  ordination,  namely,  after  the  first 

*  Blunt's  Annotated Praycr-Book. 


EMBER  DAYS. 


127 


Sunday  in  Lent,  after  Whitsunday,  after  the  14th  of  Sep- 
tember (Holy  Cross  Day),  and  after  the  13th  of  December 
(St.  Lucia)." 

"  Does  the  word  ember  mean  ashes,  as  Ash-Wednes- 
day ?" 

"Well  guessed,  but  wrong.  The  word  is  probably  a 
corruption  from  the  Latin  words  '  Fasts  of  the  Four 
Seasons,'  Jejimia  qitatuor  temporum,  which  became 
quateinber  in  Germany  and  ember  here.  Let  me  pray  you 
carefully  to  attend  to  and  join  in  these  prayers  when  they 
are  said,  for  nothing  can  be  more  needful  for  the  whole 
Church  than  to  have  fit  ministers,  and  no  means  can  be 
so  sure  to  obtain  them  as  united  prayer  to  God.  The 
first  Collect  is  probably  by  Bishop  Cosin,  in  Charles  L's 
reign.  I  would  advise  you  to  analyse  these  '  Prayers 
upon  Several  Occasions.'  You  will  observe  that  all  those 
preceding  the  prayers  for  the  Ember  Weeks  are  on  one 
model,  viz.,  instances  from  Scripture,  followed  by  appli- 
cation to  the  actual  need. 

"  We  pass  on  to  the  General  Thanksgiving,  written  by 
Bishop  Reynolds  in  Charles  II.'s  reign,  and  the  other 
thanksgivings  were  added  at  the  same  time." 

"  Now  we  are  at  the  Collects,"  said  Joan. 

"  And  of  them  I  shall  give  you  simply  a  list,  first  saying 
a  few  general  words  about  them.  Collects  are  peculiar 
to  the  Western  Church.  The  Epistles  and  Gospels  are 
generally  the  same  as  were  appointed  in  the  Latin 
missals." 

"  What  does  '  Collect '  mean  ?" 

"  Either  that  the  prayer  collects  into  itself  the  pith  of 
the  Epistle  and  Gospel,  or  else  that  the  priest  prays  for 
all  the  people  collectively.*  You  will  find,  if  you  examine 
the  subject,  that  the  cycle  of  Collects,  Epistles,  and  Gos- 

*  V^l-mi's  Annotated  Prayer- Book,  p.  69. 


128 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


pels  treats,  from  Advent  to  Trinity  of  our  Lord's  life,  and 
from  Trinity  round  to  Advent  again  sets  forth  the  lessons 
to  be  learned  from  it.  For  instance,  we  have  first  His 
Advent,  or  coming;  then  His  Birth,  Christmas;  then  His 
Circumcision  ;  His  Epiphany,  or  manifestation  ;  and  so 
on,  to  His  Ascension  into  the  skies.  In  Trinity  Collects 
you  find  no  such  events,  but  moral  lessons  instead. 
"  Now  for  the  lists,  which  you  will  copy."* 

The  Collects, 
"how  far  they  are  traceable. 
"Those  marked  %  were  altered  from  the  old  models. 
A.D. 


A.D. 

Christmas  Day  .  .  1549 
St.  Stephen  .  .  1661 
St.  John  .  .  Greg.  Sac. 
JHoly  Innocents.     Gel.  Sac, 

"These  festivals  represent  three  orders  of  martyr- 
dom : — St.  Stephen,  in  will  and  in  deed  ;  St.  John,  in 
will  but  not  in  deed  ;  the  Innocents,  in  deed  but  not  in 


I.  Sunday  in  Advent  .    1 549 

II.  „       .  1549 

III.  „  „        .  1661 

IV.  „  „     Gel.  Sact 


A.D. 

1549 


A.D. 

X  IV.  after  Epiphany  Sarum. 

V.  „         „    Greg.  Sac. 

VI.  „         „        .  1661 

Septuagesima  .  Greg.  Sac. 
Sexagesima  .  Greg.  Sac. 
Quinquagesima  .       .  1549 


Sunday  after  Christmas 
J  Circumcision  (New 

Year's  Day)    .  Greg.  Sac. 
Epiphany  (Twelfth 
Day,  i.e.    12  Days 
after  Christmas)  Greg.  Sac. 
I.,  II.,  III.,  after  Epi- 
phany    .       .  Greg.  Sac. 

"  Do  let  me  ask  what  these  hard  names  mean,"  inter- 
rupted Joan. 

"The  First  Sunday  in  Lent,  being  about  forty  days 


*  Chiefly  from  Proct 
from  Bishop  Cosin. 


the  Boo/c  nf  Common  Frayrr,  by  hin 
t  See  page  105. 


COLLECTS. 


129 


before  Easter,  was  called  Quadragesima  (40)  Sunday ; 
and  to  make  round  terms,  the  preceding  were  named 
backwards,  as  it  were — Quinquagesima  (50),  Sexagesima 
(60),  and  Septuagesima  (70),  because  they  came  in  the 
fifties,  sixties,  seventies  before  Easter,  though  the  numbers 
are  in  no  case  precise. 

"Now  we  are  at  Lent.  This  was  kept  in  primitive 
times,  though  not  till  the  sixth  century  under  St.  Gregory 
the  Great  was  it  fixed  to  last  forty  days.  Its  use  was  to 
prepare  adults  for  baptism,  to  bring  them  to  repentance, 
and  to  make  communicants  ready  for  the  great  Easter 
Eucharist. 

Ash  Wednesday   .       .       .A.D.  1549 

"  So  named,  bec.ause  the  Bishop  strewed  ashes  on  the 
heads  of  penitents. 

A.D. 

I.  Sunday  in  Lent      .  1549 
IL,  III.,  IV.,  &  V. 

Sundays  in  Lent  Greg.  Sac. 
Sunday  before  Easter  Gel.  Sac. 

"The  Fourth  Sunday  in  Lent  is  named  'Midlent;'or 
'Refreshment  Sunday,'  because  the  Gospel  tells  of  the 
feeding  of  the  5,000.  Thus  there  is  an  old  custom,  in 
rural  districts  of  England,  of  sending  rich  cakes  as  pre- 
sents on  this  day.  It  is  also  called  '  Mothering  Sunday,' 
from  the  custom  of  carrying  offerings  to  the  Mother 
Church,  now  passed  into  that  of  visiting  '  the  old  house 
at  home'  on  this  day;  a  custom  still  prevalent  in  the 
country. 

"  The  Fifth  Sunday  in  Lent  is  named '  Passion  Sunday,' 
because  our  Lord  then  began  openly  to  predict  His  Passion 
or  suffering.  The  week  following  is  known  as  '  Passion 
Week.' 

"The  Sunday  preceding  Easter  is  called  'Palm  Sun- 


A.D. 

I.  Greg.  Sac. 
Good  Friday  \  II.    Gel.  Sac. 

jlll.  .  1549 
.     .  1661 


130 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


day,'  from  the  strewing  of  palms  (St.  Matt.  xxi.  8),  and 
the  succeeding  week  is  spoken  of  as  '  Holy  Week.' 

"  The  Thursday  in  Holy  Week  is  named  '  Maundy 
Thursday,'  from  the  Latin  Dies  Mandati,  the  day  of  the 
command,  our  Lord  having  then  commanded  His  dis- 
ciples to  'love  one  another'  (St.  John  xiii.  4,  17,  and  34, 
35),  and,  as  their  closest  bond  of  love,  to  celebrate  the 
Holy  Eucharist  in  remembrance  of  Him.*  (St.  Luke 
xxii.  19,  20.)  'Good  Friday'  or  the  Paschal  Day  cele- 
brates our  Lord's  death. 

"  The  Saturday  before  Easter  Day,  originally  celebrated 
with  much  ceremony,  and  known  as  '  Easter  Eve,'  was 
the  first  of  those  J  'igils  or  E\  es  appointed  to  many  other 
festivals. 

Easter  Day    .       .  Gel.  Sac. 

"The  word  Easter  is  derived  from  the  same  root  as 
the  German  Anferstehiing,  Resurrection,  and  bears  that 
meaning. 

Sunday  after  Easter    .       .       .A.D.  1 549 

"  This  Collect  originally  belonged,  as  a  second  Collect, 
to  Easter  Day.  The  Sunday  after  Easter  is  known  as  the 
Octave  of  Easter,  or  eighth  day  after  Easter;  also  as 
'  Low  Sunday,'  to  distinguish  it  from  Easter,  the  highest 
of  festivals. 

A.D.  A.D. 

II.  Sunday  after  Easter    1549     Ascension  Day       Greg.  Sac 

III.  ,,  ,,    Leo.  Sac.   |  %  Sunday  after  Ascen- 

IV.  ,  V.  ,,  ,,     Gel.  Sac.         sion  Day      .      .  Sarura. 

'  The  ceremony  of  washing  the  feet  of  the  poor  is  still  retained  io  the 
Roman  Church.  The  English  sovereigns  continued  it  till  the  latter  part  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  and  the  Archhishops  of  York  in  their  place  till  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth.  Ii  is  now  represented  by  a  gift  of  the  Maundy- 
money  and  clothing,  the  former  consisting  of  a  silver  penny,  twopence  and 
threepence,  given  to  as  many  poor  peraons  u^  the  sovereign  numbers  years 
of  age. 


COLLECTS. 


131 


"The  week  before  Whitsunday  was  sometimes  called 
'Expectation  week;'  Expectation,  that  is,  of  the  Holy 
Spirit. 

Whitsunday    .       .       .    Greg.  Sac. 
"  Named  from  a  most  curious  corruption  of  Pentecost, 
the  Jewish  feast,  through  the  German  Pfingsten. 

Trinity  Sunday       .       .    Greg.  Sac. 
"  Having  seen  the  Ascension  of  the  Son,  and  the  De- 
scent of  the  Spirit,  we  now  celebrate  the  glory  of  these 
Holy  Persons  united  with  the  Father,  as  Trinity  in  Unity. 

A.D. 


I.  Sunday  after  Trin.  Gel.  Sac. 

II.  „        „  1666 

III.  ,  IV.  „        „  Greg.  Sac. 

V.  ,,         ,,  Leo.  Sac. 

VI.  , VII.,  VIII.  „  Gel.  Sac. 
IX.  X.,  „        „  Leo.  Sac. 

XI.  „        „  Gel.  Sac. 

XII.  ,XIL,XIV.  „  Leo.  Sac. 
XV.,  XVI.       „  Gel.  Sac. 
XVII.     „        „  Greg.  Sac. 
XVIIL,  XIX.,  XX., 

XXL  „        „  Gel.  Sac. 
XXIL,  XXIIL,  XXIV., 

XXV.  ,,  ,,  Greg.  Sac. 
St.  Andrew  .  .  1552 
St.  Thomas  .  .  1549 
Conv.  of  St.  Paul       .  1549 

"This  last  feast  sums  up  the  honour  paid  to  the  many 
Saints  to  whom  it  was  undesirable  to  devote  a  separate 
day  ;  it  also  reminds  us  of  the  Communion  of  the  Church 
on  earth  with  the  Church  triumphant  in  Heaven.  So  we 
reach  the  end  of  Collects." 

"  I  should  like  to  ask  about  Saints'  Days.  Is  it  well  to 
keep  them  ?" 

"  Wliy  not?" 


Purif.  of  the  Virgin  Greg.  Sac. 
St.  Matthias  .  .  15.;  9 
Annunciation  .  Greg.  Sac. 
St.  Mark  .  .  .  1549 
SS.  Philip  and  James 

1549  and  1 66 1 
St.  Barnabas  .  .  1549 
St.  John  Baptist  .  .  1549 
St.  Peter  .  .  .  1549 
St.  James  .  .  .  1549 
X  St.  Bartholomew  .  1549 
St.  Matthew  .  .  1549 
St.  Michael  .  Greg.  Sac. 
St.  Luke  .  1549  and  166 1 
SS.  Simon  and  Jude  .  1549 
All  Saints  .       .       .  1549 


t32 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"  I  don't  quite  know,  but  " 

"  That  is  the  real  answer  of  the  objectors.  They  don't 
quite  know  what  is  wrong,  but  they  must  object  to  some- 
thing." 

"  I  thoiKjht  it  led  to  superstition." 

"How?  No,  I  do  not  want  to  quell  you.  I  want  you 
to  explain  what  you  think." 

"  Because  people  used  to  pray  to  the  Saints,  I  think." 

"  Well,  that  is  a  reason.  It  would  certainly  be  wrong 
to  pray  to  human  beings  here  or  in  Heaven.  But,  though 
I  own  it  is  done  now  by  many  of  the  ignorant  in  Roman- 
ist countries,  remember  this  was  not  the  old  intention  of 
addressing  the  Saints." 

"  Did  not  people  pray  to  them?" 

"  In  the  sense  of  asking  their  prayers,  yes.    As  we  ask 
the  prayers  of  a  friend  for  ourselves." 
"  But  these  were  dead  people." 

"  Yes.  I  do  not  defend  the  practice,  remember  ;  but 
let  us  sympathize  as  far  as  we  can  with  those  who  do. 
Nothing  is  gained  by  want  of  sjTnpathy.  Some  people 
shut  their  hearts  to  those  of  other  opinions,  and  will  hear 
or  credit  no  explanation  of  them.  This  is  a  great  loss  to 
themselves,  both  of  power  of  loving  others  and  of  mental 
clear-sightedness  ;  one  of  God's  best  gifts.  And  how  few 
have  it ! " 

"Will  you  tell  me,  then,  what  you  think  about  these 
things  ?" 

"  I  think  that  the  feeling  which  originated  the  custom 
— the  feeling,  namely,  that  the  holy  dead  can  still  hear 
and  see  and  love  us,  and  might  be  asked  to  pray  for  us 
as  we  would  ask  our  mothers  or  sisters  now — was  in  no 
way  evil,  and  if  erroneous,  contained  no  error  of  which  a 
Christian  need  be  ashamed.  But  when,  as  now,  the  prayers 
to  the  Saints  have  become  prayers  for  help  and  aid,  such  as 
we  address  to  the  Creator,  this  proves  that  the  danger  of 


SAINT-  WORSHIP. 


affectionate  address  to  the  holy  dead  is  liable  to  be  too 
great  for  weak  mortals  :  and  the  Church  of  England  was 
and  has  been  led  to  discourage  any  such  address.*  We 
as  her  children  ought  to  obey  and  own  her  wisdom.  I 
think  we  all  do.  But  do  not  let  us  make  crimes  of  our 
neighbours'  errors  and  ignorances.  That  is  all  I  insist 
on.  Do  not  mistake  me  to  lean  towards  saint-worship, 
only  towards  a  sense  of  charity  for  those  who  have  fallen 
into  dangerous  customs. 

"  As  for  our  own  celebration  of  Saints'  Days,  I  think  it 
most  desirable  :  I  should  be  sorry  to  miss  one  of  them. 
The  Apostles,  and  those  few  other  noted  Saints  whose 
names  stand  in  our  Calendar,  are  such  whose  lives  are 
invaluable  lessons  to  us.  We  go  to  church  to  hear  from 
Scripture  the  record  of  their  deeds,  and,  if  we  are  fortu- 
nate enough,  a  discourse  further  setting  them  forth. 
Then  we  pray  with  a  meaning  in  all  our  prayers  that 
God  would  graciously  give  us  some  share  of  the  virtues 
of  those  whom  we  are  commemorating ;  John  the  Baptist's 
courage,  Peter's  zeal,  John  the  Evangelist's  love.  Is  there 
any  harm  in  this  ?" 

"  Oh,  no  !" 

"  I  would  also  urge  on  you  to  honour  them  in  private 
as  well  as  in  the  public  service,  by  reading  in  two  books 
the  passage  for  the  day,  viz.,  in  Nelson's  old  Fasts  and 
Festivals  the  history  of  the  Saint  and  the  lessons  to  be 
learnt  from  it,  and  in  your  Christian  Year  (which  I  hope 
will  be  your  constant  companion)  the  appointed  poem. 
Will  you  do  this  ?" 

Joan  promised. 

"  What  says  our  friend  Bishop  Coxe  ? 

•"Oh,  live  yc  by  the  Oik-nd.-vr, 

And  w  ith  the  good  ye  dwell  ; 
The  spirit  that  comes  down  on  them, 
Shalllighteii  vou  as  well.'" 


See  Ai  tielc  xxii. 


CHAPTER  X. 


arte  ^ra^n'%aok.   J^olp  Communion  Office. 


"Sweet  auuful /wur,  t/te  only  sotaui 
One  getttle  footstep  gliding  rounds 
Offerijtg  by  turns  on  Jesiis*  part 
The  Cross  to  every  hand  and  heart, 

"  Refresh  its,  Lord,  to  Iwld  it  fast; 
And  when  Thy  veil  is  drawn  at  last. 
Let  tts  depart  wJtere  sJuidtnus  cease. 
With  words  of  blessing  and  of  peace*' 


"■Xl^E  now  approach,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "the  greatest, 
highest  service  of  the  Church.  You,  dear  child, 
are  not  yet  privileged  to  share  it ;  but,  by  God's  grace, 
this  spring  will  see  you  so." 

"  I  hope  so,"  responded  Joan,  but  in  a  low  voice. 
"  Am  I  not  right  in  believing  you  have  a  deep  desire  to 
become  a  communicant  ?" 
Joan  paused. 

"  Aunt,  I  do  not  understand  it.    I  am  afi-aid." 

"Afraid  of  what?  Of  the  Lord,  who  comes  to  us  in 
that  Sacrament?" 

"  Not  of  Him,  but — I  think  I  am  afraid  of  myself  and 
of  my  own  sins." 

"You  may  well  fear  them,  Joan,  and  the  more  you  fear 


Keble  "  On  Holy  ConcmuKton." 


*'  Christ  was  the  Word  and  spake  it; 
He  took  the  bread  and  brake  it; 
And  what  His  word  doth  make  it. 
That  I  believe,  and  take  it." 


Old  Verse,  quoted  by  Queen  Elizabeth. 


A  PRAYER  IN  VERSE. 


135 


the  better  you  are  prepared  to  approach  the  Altar.  But, 
believe  me,  that  perfect  love  which  casteth  out  fear  can 
only  come  by  frequenting  this  Sacrament,  by  obeying 
Christ's  dying  desire,  'Do  this  in  remembrance  of  Me,' 
not  by  disobeying  Him." 

"Aunt,  I  desire  to  wish  for  it,  but  I  cannot  make  myself 
wish." 

"  But  God  can,  Joan  ;  and  you  can  always  pray.  Do 
not  fear,  my  child  ;  if  you  are  not  blinding  youself,  and 
steeling  your  heart  (as  I  am  almost  sure  you  will  not  be), 
yoM  have  but  to  seek  in  prayer  those  graces  and  that 
fervour  you  desire,  and,  in  God's  own  time,  you  will  have 
them.  But  the  road  to  them  is  thorny ;  zeal  and  love  in 
perfection  are  Heaven,  and  we  are  not  to  expect  that 
here." 

"And  my  prayers  seem  so  cold  and  miserable  !" 
"Yes  ;  I  know  that  feeling,  love." 
"What  must  I  do,  then?" 

"Use  the  words  of  those  who  had  more  zeal,  until 
prayers  flow  from  your  own  heart." 

"  I  will,  indeed,  if  you  will  show  me  the  prayers." 

"  I  will  give  you  some.  Meantime  let  me  commend  to 
you,  as  a  frequent  prayer,  some  lines  of  poetry." 

"To  pray  in  verse!" 

"Yes,  if  it  does  not  seem  to  you  unnatural  as  you 
do  it.  It  does  not  to  me.  The  heart  seems  to  go  forth 
more  freely  in  poetry.    These  are  the  lines  I  mean  : — 

*'  *Lord,  help  me  to  obey  : 

Bre.-ik  Thou  the  chains  of  earth,  O  Lord, 

Which  bind  and  hold  my  heart  ; 
Let  it  be  Thine  and  Thine  alone, 

Let  none  with  Thee  have  part : 
Send  down,  O  Lord,  Thy  sacrud  fire, 

Consume  and  cleanse  the  sin 
That  lingers  still  within  its  depths; 

Let  heavenly  love  begin. 


136 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


That  sacred  flame  Thy  Saints  have  known, 

Kindle,  O  Lord,  in  me  ; 
Thou  above  all  the  rest  for  ever. 

And  all  the  rest  in  Thee.*  • 

"Some  such  words  as  these — better,  if  you  can  find 
them — glowing  with  zeal,  help  to  kindle  in  us  that  feeling 
which  animated  the  writer. 

"  At  the  end  of  our  lesson  I  will  give  you,  as  I  have 
promised,  some  prayers,  and  name  some  books  which 
may  aid  you  in  this  way.  Now  we  will  return  to  our 
history.  For,  remember,  the  'dry  bones'  of  Church 
History  may  live  for  us,  and  animate  our  hves  to-day. 
There  is  no  other  history  which  can  do  this. 

"  I  have  told  you  something  of  the  ancient  liturgies. 
Procter  and  Neale  will  tell  you  anything  more  that  you 
desire  to  know.  The  so-called  Gallican  Liturgy  was  used 
in  the  British  Church ;  this  was  adopted  by  St.  Augustine 
with  changes  from  the  Roman  use.  So  much  I  have 
told  you,  and  that  Bishop  Osmund  (1080)  framed  the 
widely-spread  Sarum  Missal,  '  with  the  full  idea  not  only 
that  national  Churches  had  a  certain  independence,  but 
that  exact  uniformity  of  ritual  is  by  no  means  necessary 
to  ensure  agreement  in  Catholic  tmth.'  This  Missal  was 
used  till  1549,  the  second  year  of  Edward  VI. 

"But  none  of  the  old  Mass  Offices  began  like  our 
Communion  Sen  ice,  with  the  Commandments.  These 
were  not  added  till  1552,  the  idea  being  taken  from  a 
Communion  Service  by  a  Reformer,  named  Pullain,  or 
Pollanus,  who  had  fled  from  his  home  in  Strasbourg,  in 
consequence  of  persecution,  and  had  received  from  the 
Duke  of  Somerset  a  shelter  in  the  Abbey  of  Glastonbury. 
Here  he  and  his  congregation  prayed  in  peace,  and  hence 
issued  their  service-book,  1552. 


"  Give  me  thy  heart."   A.  A.  Procter.    Legends  ami  Lyrics. 


PARAPHRASE  OF  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER.  137 


"  The  rubrics  at  the  beginning  were  placed  and  under- 
went some  alterations  between  1549  and  1661.  The 
Lord's  Prayer  was  first  printed  here  in  161 1,  though  before 
ordered  by  rubric  to  be  repeated.  It  is  a  fit  beginning 
indeed  for  so  high  a  service ;  no  words  but  our  Lord's 
are  fit  to  begin  it ;  and  I  would  remark  here  how  marvel- 
lously this  short  prayer  lends  itself  in  our  lips  to  all  our 
several  needs.  It  can  apply  in  so  many  different  senses, 
that  the  reproach  of  vain  repetition  can  never  be  rightly 
brought  against  the  use  of  it  even  five  or  six  times  in  our 
services.  Here,  for  instance,  I  would  like  to  give  a  short 
paraphrase  of  the  prayer  as  it  should  be  followed  in  the 
mind  at  the  beginning  of  the  Communion  Service,  by 
any  one  intending  to  communicate. 

"  I.  '  Our  Father,  which  art  in  Heaven,  may  Thy  Name 
and  Glory  be  hallowed  in  our  hearts  in  this  sacred  service ; 
let  no  unholy  thing  come  in  to  disturb  its  sanctity. 

'^2.  '  May  Thy  kingdom  come,  not  only  at  some  futuie 
day  with  visible  lustre,  but  now  at  this  service,  in  peace 
and  with  the  invisible  brightness  of  the  Spirit  to  gladden 
our  hearts. 

"  3.  '  Help  us  here  in  obeying  Thy  command,  "  Do  this 
in  remembrance  of  Me,"  to  approach  Thee  in  the  same 
lowly  and  reverent  mind  which  is  enjoyed  by  those  of  us 
who  are  "  gone  before,"  and  by  Thy  Angels  to  whom  Thy 
will  is  bliss. 

"4.  'Give  us  this  day  the  bread  which  he  who  eateth 
shall  never  hunger  more. 

"5.  'And  here  we  humbly  pray  Thee  make  us  fit  to 
approach  Thee  by  forgiveness  ;  we  are  so  unworthy  in 
ourselves  ;  we  dare  not  come  till  Thou  forgive  us.  Help 
us  to  fergive  any  who  have  injured  us,  with  or  without 
our  knowledge  ;  make  us  free  from  bitterness  against 
them,  for  we  remember  that  we  dare  nut  offer  our  gifts  at 


138 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


the  Altar  till  we  are  reconciled  to  our  brother,  and  that 
he  who  loveth  not  his  brother  whom  he  hath  seen,  cannot 
love  Thee  whom  he  hath  not  seen. 

"  6.  '  Finally,  Lord,  keep  us  from  the  temptation  of  vain 
and  distracting  thoughts  in  this  high  service,  and  so 
deliver  us  from  the  evil  of  receiving  Thy  Body  and  Blood 
to  our  own  condemnation.' 

"  You  see  what  I  mean  ?  And  this  may  be  done  in  any 
and  every  other  case,  so  universally  applicable  is  this 
marvellous  prayer." 

"  I  have  sometimes  wondered,"  said  Joan,  "  why  the 
people  do  not  repeat  the  prayer  here,  after  the  minister, 
and  I  have  wondered  more,  since  I  noticed  that  in  the 
rubric,  in  the  Morning  Service,  when  the  Lord's  Prayer 
is  first  said,  the  people  are  ordered  to  repeat  it  with  the 
priest  wheresoever  it  is  used  in  Divine  service." 

"  It  was  the  old  custom  that  the  priest  repeated  it  alone, 
and  the  custom  seems  here  to  have  been  adopted  agaipst 
the  general  rule.  There  is  no  other  reason,  I  think ; 
though  some  say  it  is  in  this  place  a  sort  of  Consecrating 
Prayer,  and  so  should  be  said  by  the  priest  only. 

"  The  following  beautiful  Collect,  one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful in  any  service,  was  taken  from  the  Sarum  preparation 
for  Mass,  and  placed  in  the  reformed  service-book  in 
IS49- 

"  The  Commandments,  I  have  said,  were  placed  here 
in  1552.  It  is  well  to  show  thus  in  our  highest  Christian 
service,  our  union  with,  and  derivation  from,  that  older 
Church  to  which  Jehovah  gave  the  law.  The  responses 
make  the  ten  Commandments  into  ten  Christian  prayers." 

"  Will  you  explain  to  me  how for  I  generally  feel  cold 
and  uninterested  in  hearing  the  Commandments  in  «hurch. 
They  seem  to  me  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  us.  We  are 
not  Ukely  to  make  graven  images." 


THE  COMMANDMENTS. 


«39 


"  You  will  correct  that  feeling  by  remembering  that  we 
meet  in  a  common  service,  not  to  pray  only  for  ourselves 
individually  or  for  our  friends,  but  for  the  Church,  and 
indeed  the  world  at  large.  I  will  explain  how  you  may 
make  Christian  prayers  of  the  Commandments.  The 
response  to  the  first  means  that  we  ask  God  to  keep  us 
from  the  sin  of  idolizing  any  other  person  or  thing  than 
Him ;  gold,  or  praise,  or  self-indulgence,  or  any  other. 

"  2.  The  second  may  be  taken  as  a  missionary  prayer 
for  the  heathen,  and  that  our  own  prayers  and  praises 
may  be  offered  rightly. 

"  3.  The  third  is  a  prayer  against  the  abuse  of  God's 
holy  name  by  others  in  oaths  and  blasphemy.  For  our- 
selves, who  are  not  tempted  to  these,  we  may  take  it  to 
ask  that  we  as  Christians,  having  taken  on  us  the  name 
of  Christ,  i.e.  of  God,  may  be  preserved  from  taking  it 
in  vain,  as  we  do  if  we  act  so  as  to  bring  disgrace  on 
Christianity. 

"4.  The  fourth  is  perfectly  simple.  It  is  a  great  need 
for  all  the  world  to  keep  the  Lord's  Day  holy,  and  grate- 
fully to  accept  God's  gift  of  this  rest,  not  doing  our  own 
pleasure  on  His  Holy  Day.  (Isaiah  Iviii.  13,  14.) 

"  5.  The  fifth  is  simple.  The  promise  may  be  taken  by 
us  to  mean  that  the  good  example  and  honour  of  obedient 
children  shall  remam  after  them  and  work  good  in  the 
world. 

"  6,  7,  8.  The  three  following  should  be  made  hearty 
prayers,  for  sorely  is  the  deliverance  from  these  sins 
needed  in  the  world.  As  you  gi-ow  older,  you  will  see 
more  and  more  of  this,  and  often,  if  you  think  seriously 
of  it,  grow  heartsick  at  the  depth  of  crime  about  us.  The 
sixth  represents  the  guilt  of  hatred  ;  the  seventh  that  of 
an  impure  mind,  a  plague-spot  which  does  not  spare  even 
young  girls.    Oh,  how  I  long  to  see  young  women  strug- 


I40 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


gling  as  Christ's  servants  against  it  in  themselves  and 
others ! 

"9.  The  ninth  apphes  to  us  in  the  sense  of  gossip, 
which  always  puts  us  in  danger  of  breaking  this  Com- 
mandment. Also  against  a  fault-finding,  sarcastic,  or 
over-zealous  tongue,  which  is  liable  to  the  same  danger. 

"  10.  The  tenth  is  a  prayer  against  jealousy." 

"  I  think  this  will  help  me,"  said  Joan  ;  "  and  now  I 
understand  why  we  hear  the  Commandments  on  our 
knees." 

"  Mrs.  Askell  continued :  "The  prayers  for  the  Sovereign 
were  added  in  1549." 
"  Here  is  a  creed." 
"What  creed,  Joan?" 
"The  Nicene,  is  it  not?" 
"Yes.  Why?" 
Joan  did  not  quite  know. 

"Because  it  was  drawn  up  at  the  Council  of  Nice  or 
Nicxa,  in  Bithynia,in  Asia  Minor,  A.D.  325.  This  great 
council,  as  the  table  told  you,  was  summoned  by  the 
Emperor  Constantine  to  discuss  the  Arian  heresy." 

"  I  should  think  Athanasius  was  there." 

"  He  was  indeed,  as  a  deacon,  and  fought  well,  you 
may  imagine.  Here  we  will  read  two  passages  on  the 
subject;  one  from  Milman's  History  of  Christianity, 
vol.  ii.,  and  one  from  Dean  Stanle/s  Essays  on  Ecclesi- 
astical History;  you  will  find  them  very  picturesque  and 
interesting.  This  was  the  first  General  or  CErumenical 
Council ;  i.e.  a  Council  of  the  whole  Church." 

They  found  the  passages  and  read  them.  Joan  thought 
them  very  interesting.  They  gave  her  a  living  impression 
of  those  old  days.  Mrs.  Askell  then  explained  that  the 
Creed  was  at  that  Council  settled  only  down  to  the 
clause,  "  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost."    The  rest  was 


THE  NICENE  CREED. 


added  a.d.  381,  at  the  Council  of  Constantinople,  and 
immense  and  violent  discussion  had  since  taken  place  on 
the  ])assage,  "  Who  proceedeth  from  the  Father  and  the 
Son,"  the  clause  being  called  The  Filioque.  The  And- 
from-the-Son.  "You  will  often  find  it  mentioned  in 
Church  histories,"  she  said. 

"Aunt,"  said  Joan,  "I  do  not  quite  understand  these 
phrases:  'God  of  God,  Light  of  Light.'" 

"  Put  a  comma  after  the  first  word  of  each,  and  you 
will  understand  :  '  God,  of  God ;  Light,  of  Light."  That  is 
'  God,  the  Son  of  God  ;  Light,  proceeding  from  Light.' " 

"  I  see  it  now,"  said  Joan. 

"  Here  follows  the  sermon,"  continued  IVIrs.  Askell, 
pointing  to  the  rubric  which  gave  that  order.  "  And  a 
most  important  part  of  the  service  it  is.  Before  the  Re- 
formation, it  had  fallen  into  almost  complete  disuse : 
Sunday  after  Sunday  passed  in  many  places  without  a 
sermon ;  and  when  the  service  was  in  Latin,  thnt  was  a 
greater  loss  even  than  it  would  be  now.  At  the  Refor- 
mation, preaching  was  revived,  but  of  late  people  have 
come  to  think  it  of  too  much  importance ;  for  they  will 
hardly  go  to  church  for  the  sake  of  prayers  alone.  This 
is  a  grave  error,  yet  clergymen  must  (and  nowadays 
they  do)  remember  the  exceeding  need  of  sermons  to 
bring  us  to  the  point  of  zeal,  and  to  teach  us  things  which 
we  are  too  idle  or  too  ignorant  to  learn  from  books.  In 
the  splendid  revival  of  Church  feehng  which  is  now  going 
on,  sermons  are  among  the  chief  instruments  used  by  the 
clergy  who  lead  that  movement. 

"  Here  is  the  rubric  which  says  that  the  priest,  returning 
to  the  Lord's  table,  shall  begin  the  Offertory.  That  was 
the  verse  sung  before  offering  the  bread  and  wine,  and 
now  means  the  string  of  sentences  which  stand  there. 
Meanwhile,  money  is  collected,  which  is  hence  called  the 


142  THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 

Offertory.  It  is  also  in  one  sense  an  offertory  itself,  being 
offered  to  God.  And  let  me  urge  you  to  remember,  and 
to  beg  the  poor  to  remember,  when  you  come  to  speak  to 
them  on  this  subject,  as  you  probably  may,  that  the  money 
is  not  paid  as  a  due  for  the  sacrament  about  to  be  given, 
but  is  a  thankoffering  natural  at  the  Holy  Eucharist. 
You  remember  what  Eucharist  means?" 
"  Yes  ;  Thanksgiving." 

"  Right.  Some  are  apt  to  think  they  may  not  commu- 
nicate without  giving  money.  That  is  wrong.  But  the 
feeling  which  leads  us  to  give  to  the  poor  when  receiving 
so  great  a  boon  is  right  and  necessary  to  the  true  grace 
of  the  Sacrament.  We  would  not  have  the  reproach  of 
the  ungrateful  debtor.  (St.  Matthew  xviii.)  Originally, 
other  things  besides  money  were  offered,  as  bread,  wine, 
etc.  The  alms  are  (as  the  following  rubric  shows)  offered 
to  God  by  the  priest.  The  next  rubric  tells  us  that  the 
priest  shall  then  place  the  bread  and  wine  for  celebration 
on  the  Altar.  They  stand  hitherto  on  a  small  side  table 
called  a  credence.  This  is  the  only  proper  way,  though 
some  people  are  found  to  object  to  this,  apparently 
thinking  it  more  seeml)-  for  a  clerk  or  pew-opener  to 
arrange  the  Altar  for  this  great  service. 

"  Now  follows  the  'Prayer  for  the  whole  state  of  Christ's 
Church.'  Pra>  ers  similar  to  this  are  found  in  all  liturgies. 
The  words  'militant  here  on  earth'  were  added  in  1552 
at  the  desire  of  the  German  Reformer  Martin  Bucer,  who 
feared  that  without  tliese  the  final  clause  might  be  taken 
as  a  prayer  for  the  dead. 

"  Here  I  must  mention  that  in  asking  God  to  accept 
our  '  alms  and  oblations,'  we  mean  by  alms  our  money,  by 
oblations  the  bread  and  wine  we  are  offering  up. 

"  The  following  exhortations  have  been  much  changed 
between  1548  and  1661.    They  are  modern. 


THE  CONSECRATION. 


143 


"  The  beautiful  and  touching  confession  'Almighty  God, 
Father  of  our  Lord,'  &c.,  was  abridged  and  much  altered 
in  1548  from  '  Hermann's  Consultation.'  There  is,  to  my 
mind,  no  form  of  prayer  in  the  whole  book  which  brings 
our  hearts  more  closely  to  their  Maker.  The  following 
absolution  is  from  the  Sarum  Liturgy  ;  the  '  Comfortable 
Words'  of  Scripture  were  suggested  by  'Hermann's  Con- 
sultation.' 

"  The  part  which  now  follows  was  called  the  Canon. 
The  '  Lift  up  your  hearts,'  or  '  Sursum  Corda,'  is  in  all 
liturgies,  as  also  the  '  Ter-Sanctus'  or  '  Trisagion,'  i.e. 
Thrice  Holy ;  the  hymn  sung  by  the  Angels.  (Rev.  iv.  8.) 

"  Of  the  Proper  Prefaces,  that  for  Cliristmas  was  com- 
posed in  1 549 ;  that  for  Easter  is  from  the  Gelasian 
Sacramentary ;  that  for  Ascension  Day  from  the  Grego- 
rian ;  that  for  Whitsunday  was  composed  in  1 549 ;  that 
for  Trinity  is  from  the  Gelasian  Sacramentary  again. 

"  The  prayer  '  We  do  not  presume'  was  composed  in 
1548. 

"The  Prayer  of  Consecration  now  follows,  consisting 
of  three  parts  ;  (i)  an  introduction  ;  (2)  a  prayer  that  we 
may  rightly  partake  of  the  Sacrament ;  and  (3)  Christ's 
own  words  consecrating  the  bread  and  wine. 

"  Now  comes  the  point  of  most  intimate  communion 
between  the  believer  and  his  Lord,  when  in  a  high  and 
mysterious  manner,  which  we  believe  in,  though  it  is 
above  our  understanding,  our  souls  are  refreshed  and 
strengthened  by  Christ's  Body  and  Blood. 

"  The  words  of  administration  have  differed  much  at 
various  times  ;  the  earliest  of  which  we  hear  are  '  The 
Holy  Body,'  or '  The  Body  of  Christ.'  In  1 549  the  English 
Church  adopted  from  the  old  service-books  of  York  and 
Hereford  the  words  'The  Body  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
which  was  given  fur  thee,  preserve  thy  body  and  soul 


144 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


unto  everlasting  life  ;'  and  '  The  blood  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  which  was  shed  for  thee,  preserve,'  &c.  In  1552 
the  latter  part  of  our  Sentences, '  Take  and  eat,'  &c.,'  Drink 
this,'  &c.,  was  put  instead,  for  fear  of  the  doctrine  01 
transubstantiation.  But  in  1559,  under  Queen  Elizabeth, 
the  two  Sentences  were  united,  so  that  we  have  both  the 
old  and  the  new. 

"  We  in  England,  as  you  know,  receive  both  bread  and 
wine,  and  separately.  The  Greek  Church  administers 
bread  soaked  in  wine.  In  the  Roman,  the  laity  {i.e.  those 
who  are  not  clergy)  never  receive  the  cup,  but  take  from 
the  priest  a  consecrated  wafer.  Their  wine  is  mixed  with 
water,  and  many  good  authorities  in  the  Enghsh  Church 
think  this  should  be  the  custom,  both  in  sjTnbolism  of 
the  water  and  blood  which  flowed  from  the  side  of  our 
Lord,  and  because  the  cup  which  he  used  at  the  Supper 
was  probably  so  mixed.  We  are  the  only  Church  who 
receive  each  element  separately. 

"  The  bread  and  wine  should  be  received  with  great 
reverence  and  care.  The  best  way  to  take  the  former  is 
to  let  it  be  laid  in  the  right  hand,  placed  open  across  the 
left,  and  then  to  bow  the  head  and  eat  it.  This  is  more 
reverent,  and  we  are  then  less  liable  to  crumble  the  bread ; 
a  thing  to  be  by  all  means  avoided.  The  cup  should  be 
taken  carefully  in  both  hands.  Sad  accidents  have  hap- 
pened for  want  of  care  in  this.  While  kneeling  at  the 
Altar,  we  ought  to  pray  devoutly  that  Christ  will  indeed 
purify  us  with  His  Body  and  Blood,  and  then,  if  we  have 
any  dear  special  request  to  urge,  this  is  the  time ;  for 
now,  if  ever,  our  souls  are  near  to  God. 

"  Among  the  small  details  which  are  worthy  of  remark 
is  this.  If  the  lips  remain  moistened  with  the  wine,  some 
wipe  them  with  the  hand,  and  with  the  moisture  anoint 
the  eyes,  saying  inwardly :  '  Lord,  close  mine  eyes  to 


CONDUCT  AT  THE  EUCHARIST. 


145 


evil  and  open  them  to  good  ;'  and  the  forehead,  saying  : 
'Lord,  keep  my  mind  from  thinking  or  devising  that 
which  is  wrong.'  Then,  not  staying  too  long,  we  should 
quietly  rise,  go  to  our  seat,  and  finish  our  private  prayers. 

"  Christian  courtesy  and  humility  may  well  be  shown  in 
our  placing  ourselves  at  the  Altar.  To  draw  back  for  a 
poor  person,  or  to  allow  a  member  of  a  family  to  be  by 
his  relatives,  is  more  gracious  than  what  one  often  sees — 
'one  taking  before  other  his  supper'  (i  Cor.  xi.  21),  some 
great  person  almost  pushing  to  be  first. 

"  Once  in  our  places,  books  of  devotion,  such  as  Bishop 
Wilson's,  Keble's,  or  Mr.  Scudamore's  Steps  to  the  Altar, 
are  useful,  to  keep  our  minds  from  wandering.  I  always 
repeat  in  this  quiet  time  the  beautiful  hymn  by  Miss 
Waring,  'My  times  are  in  Thy  hand.'" 

Joan  did  not  know  the  hymn ;  her  aunt,  therefore,  gave 
her  a  copy  of  it  to  learn  by  heart.* 

Mrs.  Askell  continued  :  "  The  Lord's  Prayer  was  put  in 
its  present  place  in  1552,  instead  of  being  at  the  end  of 
the  Canon  ;  i.e.  after  the  prayer  of  Consecration. 

"The  two  thanksgivings, '  O  Lord,'  and  'Almighty  and 
Everlasting,'  may  be  said  to  have  been  composed  in 
1 549,  though  parts  of  both  were  taken  from  old  sources. 

"The  Gloria  in  Excclsis,  or 'Glory  be  to  God  on  high,' 
is  taken  from  the  Eastern  liturgies,  and  in  the  time  of 
Athanasius  was  ordered  to  be  said  at  dawn.  Note  it  as 
'  A  Dawn-hymn  of  the  East.'  See  how  glorious  it  is ! 
What  a  triumphal  paean  !  All  stand  while  repeating  it, 
in  sign  of  joy  and  thanksgiving. 

"  The  blessing  (the  first  half  being  from  Phil.  iv.  7)  was 
placed  here  as  it  stands  in  1549,  the  second  part  being 
Anglo-Saxon.  The  form  of  the  blessing  is  peculiar  to  the 
English  liturgy. 

*  Sec  Appendix  to  this  chapter. 


1^6 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


"  Of  the  six  Collects  following,  three  are  old  and  three 
new  ;  the  beautiful '  Prevent  us,  O  Lord,'  being  old. 

"  Thus  ends  a  service  which  for  purity  and  beauty  may 
well  stand  test.  Let  us  thank  God  we  have  it,  and  use 
it  as  often  as  He  gives  us  opportunity.  In  the  Roman 
Church  every  person  is  required  to  communicate  once  a 
year  at  least ;  viz.,  at  Easter.  In  ours,  we  are  expected 
to  receive  it  thrice  at  least,  Easter  being  one  of  the  times. 

"  Looking  on  to  the  rubrics  which  foUow,  we  see  it 
enjoined  that  in  no  case  shall  the  priest  communicate 
without  three  or  four  other  persons.  This  is  aimed 
against  the  Roman  practice  at  High  Mass,  where  the 
priest  alone  receives.  Indeed,  no  one  can  help  seeing 
that  the  Roman  service  is  one  made  for  priests  and  not 
for  people. 

"  I  will  add  no  more  on  the  subject  of  the  Holy  Com- 
munion. It  is  one  on  which  we  might  speak  for  many 
an  hour.  But  your  time  is  not  yet  come,  dear  child.  It 
will  be  a  joy  to  me  indeed  when  we  kneel  at  the  Altar 
together." 


APPENDIX. 

MY  TIMES  ARE  IN  THY  HAND. 
"  Father,  I  know  that  all  my  life 
Is  portioned  out  for  me  ; 
And  the  changes  that  are  sure  to  come 

I  do  not  fear  to  see. 
But  I  ask  Thee  for  a  present  mind, 
Intent  on  pleasing  Thee. 

"  I  ask  Thee  for  a  faithful  love. 

Through  constant  watching  wise, 
To  meet  the  glad  with  joyful  smiles. 

And  wipe  the  tearful  eyes : 
A  heart  at  leisure  from  itself 
To  soothe  and  sympathize. 


MY  TIMES  ARE  IN  THY  HAND.  147 


"  I  would  not  have  the  restless  will 

That  hurries  to  and  fro. 
Seeking  for  some  great  thing  to  do^ 

Or  secret  thing  to  know  : 
I  would  be  treated  as  a  child 

And  guided  where  to  go. 

"  Wherever  in  the  world  I  am. 
In  whatsoe'er  estate, 
I  have  a  fellowship  with  hearts 

To  keep  and  cultivate, 
And  a  work  of  lowly  love  to  do 
For  the  Lord  on  whom  I  wait. 

"  So  I  ask  Thee  for  the  daily  strength. 
To  none  that  ask  denied. 
And  a  mind  to  blend  with  outward  life 

While  keeping  at  Thy  side  ; 
Content  to  dwell  in  little  space. 
So  Thou  be  glorified. 

"  There  are  briers  besetting  every  path 
That  call  for  constant  care  ; 
There  is  a  crook  in  every  lot. 

And  an  earnest  need  for  prayer ; 
But  the  lowly  heart  that  leans  on  God 
Is  happy  anywhere. 

**  In  a  service  which  Thy  love  appoints, 
There  are  no  bonds  for  me  ; 
But  my  secret  heart  is  taught  the  truth 

Which  makes  Thy  children  free. 
And  a  life  of  self-renouncing  love 
Is  a  life  of  liberty." 

A.  L.  Waring. 

PRAYERS. 

The  Confession  from  the  Holy  Communion  Service,  "  Al- 
mighty God,  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  This  should 
be  always  used  in  self-examination. 

A  PRAYER  FOR  CONTRITION. 
O  most  loving  Father,  I  have  sinned  against  Heaven  and 
before  Thee!    Oh,  that  I  had  never  offended  Thee,  my  God 
and  my  all !    But  at  least  accept  this  my  burning  desire  and 
wish  from  my  inmost  heart.    While  it  is  still  the  time  of  pity. 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


look  Thou  upon  me  and  be  merciful  unto  me.  Thou  knowest 
that  I  desire  to  love  Thee  more  than  all  that  claims  my  love. 
Thou  knowest  that  I  trust  in  Thee,  and  ofter  Thee  my  heart, 
with  the  earnest  prayer  that  it  may  be  broken  and  contrite 
before  Thee.  Be  pleased,  O  Lord,  to  accept  it  as  a  burnt 
sacrifice  :  I  give  it  all  to  Thee,  and  with  it  I  give  Thee  all  my 
members,  all  I  have  and  all  I  am.  O  bring  my  soul  out  of 
prison  that  I  may  praise  Thy  name !  O  let  me  at  least  begin 
in  this  vale  of  tears  to  offer  with  all  my  soul  to  Thy  Divine 
Majesty  the  sacrifice  of  praise  and  thanksgiving ;  to  take  the 
cup  of  salvation  and  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord,  that 
hereafter  I  may  praise  Thee  for  ever,  through  Jesus  Christ,  Thy 
Son,  our  Lord.  Amen. 

FOR  HELP  TO  .SERVE  GOD. 
Remember  Thy  tender  mercies,  O  Lord,  and  Thy  loving  kind- 
nesses, which  have  been  ever  of  old ;  and  stretch  forth  Thy  Right 
Hand  to  Thy  creature,  striving  to  come  to  Thee.  Help  Thou 
the  weakness  of  him  that  can  do  nothing  without  Thee  ;  draw 
him  unto  Thee,  for  Thou  knowest  that  he  cannot  come  unless 
Thou,  Father,  draw  him  with  Thy  love  and  Holy  Spirit.  Make 
me.  Thy  sen'ant,  willing  to  please  Thee.  Give  me  those  holy 
gifts,  by  which  alone  I  can  be  acceptable  to  Thee.  Claim  me 
wholly  for  Thine  o\vn,  who  owe  Thee  all  that  I  am.  Let  the 
brightness  of  Thy  presence  dri\  e  away  from  me  the  evil  spirits 
of  darkness.  Tear  asunder  my  chains,  and  lead  me  into  Thy 
light  and  liberty,  that  my  soul  may  magnify  Thy  name,  and 
that  I  may  tell  forth  the  praises  of  Thy  redeeming  mercy, 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour.  Amen. 

FOR  AN  AWAKENED  SOUL. 
O  Sovereign  Judge,  deliver  me  of  Thy  great  mercy  from  the 
sleep  of  sin  ;  suffer  not  my  soul  to  slumber,  lest  I  fall  into  a 
deadly  sleep.  Grant  me  not  to  despise  or  neglect  slight  sins, 
lest  I  fall  unaMare>  into  tliose  that  are  great.  Awake,  O  my 
soul,  from  thy  sleeji,  and  cry  to  Jesus  Christ,  that  He  may  raise 
thee  up,  and  quicken  thee  with  His  never-failing  gi  ace,  whereby 
thou  mayest  live  everlastingly.  Amen. 


PR  A  VERS. 


149 


A  PRAYER  OF  HUMBLE  DESIRE  FOR  GUIDANCE. 
"Lead,  Kindly  Light,  amid  the  encircling  gloom. 
Lead  Thou  me  on  ; 
The  night  is  dark,  and  I  am  far  from  home, 

Lead  Thou  me  on. 
Keep  Thou  my  feet ;  I  do  not  ask  to  see 
The  distant  scene,  one  step  enough  for  me. 

"  I  was  not  ever  thus,  nor  prayed  that  Thou 

Wouldst  lead  me  on  ; 
I  loved  to  choose  and  see  my  path,  but  now 

Lead  Thou  me  on. 
I  loved  the  garish  day,  and  spite  of  fears 
Pride  ruled  my  will ;  remember  not  past  years. 

"  So  long  Thy  power  hath  kept  me,  sure  A  still 
Will  lead  me  on, 
O'er  moor  and  fen,  o'er  crag  and  torrent,  till 

The  night  is  gone  ; 
And  with  the  morn  those  angel  faces  smile 
Which  I  have  loved  long  since  and  lost  awhile."* 

Dr.  Newman. 

A  PRAYER  OF  LOVE. 
O  Jesus,  mine  own  Lord,  if  I  be  siclv.  Thou  art  my  health ;  if 
hungry.  Thou  art  my  fulness ;  if  I  be  poor,  Thou  art  my  riches  ; 
if  weak.  Thou  art  my  strength  ;  if  I  be  ignorant.  Thou  art  my 
wisdom  ;  if  I  be  a  sinner.  Thou  art  my  atonement,  my  sanctifi- 
cation,  and  redemption.  O  my  Jesus,  niy  y\Jl,  grant  that  I  may 
love  Thee  above  all  things,  and  that  in  Thee  only  I  may  seek 
my  repose  and  perfect  rest ;  for  in  Thee  only  is  all  that  I  can 
desire  ;  with  Thee  is  the  fulness  of  joy  ;  Thou  only  art  niy  home 
and  my  life.  To  Whom  be  honour  and  glory,  world  without 
end.  Amen. 

*  "  I  am  not  sure  that  I  thus  seize  the  highest  meaning  of  the  Hnes,"  said 
Mrs.  Askell,  as  they  read  this  poem  together,  "but  at  the  'angel  faces'  I 
always  think  of  the  two  most  heavenly  faces  I  ever  saw,  tliosc  of  George 
Peabody  and  John  Keble." 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


A  PRAYER  OF  TRUST. 
Lord,  I  am  certain  of  Thy  unbounded  love  :  I  will,  therefore, 
lay  me  down  in  peace  and  take  my  rest,  neither  in  love  with  life 
nor  afraid  of  death.  My  lot  is  in  Thy  hands.  I  cast  all  my 
care  upon  Tliee,  O  Lord,  for  Thou  carest  for  me,  and  all  the 
hairs  of  my  head  are  numbered  in  Thy  sight.  Thou  art  the 
Lord  ;  do  as  seemeth  good  in  Thine  eyes ;  who  am  I  that  I 
should  say.  What  doest  Thou  ?  Shall  the  clay  say  to  the  potter. 
Why  dost  thou  make  me  thus?  Behold,  we  are  in  Thy  hands, 
even  as  the  clay  in  the  potter's.  Thy  will  be  mine.  If  Thou 
wilt  have  me  live,  my  heart  is  ready,  O  God ;  only  increase 
Thy  giace  that  I  may  serve  Thee  more  faithfully  :  if  Thou  wilt 
have  me  die,  my  heart  is  ready,  O  God  ;  only  let  my  spirit 
be  received  in  peace.  Thou,  O  Christ,  art  life  to  me,  and  to 
die  is  a  gain.  If  long  life  be  given  me,  I  will  live  to  Thee,  to 
Thy  honour  and  glory.  If  I  die,  death  shall  be  my  gain  ;  for  I 
shall  follow  and  attain  Thee,  whom  my  soul  seeketh  and  loveth. 
Whensoever  I  walk  tlirough  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death 
I  will  fear  no  evil,  for  Thou  art  with  me.  Only  this  I  pray,  O 
Father,  whensoever  my  end  shall  be — to-day  or  to-morrow,  in 
the  midst  of  my  year.s,  or  in  old  age,  let  me  die  in  Thy  favour. 
Lighten  mine  eyes,  that  I  sleep  not  in  death.  Into  Thy  hands, 
O  Lord,  I  commend  my  spirit,  for  Thou  hast  redeemed  me,  O 
Lord  God  of  Truth ;  living  or  dying,  Lord,  I  am  Thine.  Thy 
will  be  done  in  me  ;  and  let  me  never  be  separated  from  Thee, 
my  God,  my  all.  Amen.* 

•  Almost  all  thciC  prayers  are  taken  from  Devotional  Hef/is.  Masters. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


fltte  l^va^trMotik.   ll?ol)o  ISaptism,  Sic. 

"In  token  that  thou  shalt  Hot  fear 
Christ  criccified  to  own. 
We  print  the  Cross  upon  thy  brow, 
A?id  mark  thee  His  alone." 

Dean  Alford. 

'T'HE  course  of  the  lessons  was  now  somewhat  inter- 
rupted by  a  circumstance  which  interested  Joan 
greatly.  There  had  been  questions  some  time  before,  in 
Barminster,  of  urging  on  the  rather  lukewarm  zeal  of  the 
place  in  missionary  work.  A  council  had  been  formed  in 
the  town  to  discuss  the  matter  :  all  had  gone  prosperously ; 
the  subject  had  been  divided  into  several  branches,  the 
execution  entrusted  to  different  committees,  and,  to  the 
ladies,  one  very  pleasant  branch,  the  arrangements, 
namely,  for  maintaining  a  little  Kaffir  girl  at  a  Church 
Mission  School  in  her  own  country.  Half-crown  sub- 
scriptions were  collected  from  women  alone  to  the  amount 
of  about  £6  ;  and  this  sum  was  entrusted  for  the  purpose 
to  the  Ladies'  Association  in  connection  with  the  dear  old 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  a  sort  of  very 
useful  daughter  to  it.  Pleasant  news  came  from  the 
missionary's  wife,  of  the  choice  having  fallen  on  a  dear, 
pretty  little  black-eyed  maiden,  who  was  to  be  baptized 
by  the  name  of  Etheldreda,  the  name  of  the  Patron  Saint 
of  a  mission  church  of  St.  Salvador.  The  event  which 
had  delayed  the  lessons  was  a  "  Bee,"  and  some  subse- 


152 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


quent  industry  in  order  to  prepare  a  box  of  clothes  for 
little  Ethel.  Then  Joan  and  Canon  Gibson's  little  daugh- 
ter had  put  their  pence  together  to  buy  a  pretty  picture 
r-f  the  Baptism  of  Our  Lord,  on  which  was  written — "To 
Etheldreda  in  Africa,  from  Joan  and  Mary  in  England, 
to  remind  her  of  her  own  baptism."  This  had  been  put 
in  the  box,  and  now  that  box,  full  of  pink  cotton  gar- 
ments, stout  calico  ones,  and  nice  warm  things  in  red 
flannel  for  the  cold  and  rainy  African  winter,  the  precious 
picture  and  a  Bible  laid  carefully  among  them,  was  nailed 
down  and  sent  off. 

It  was  the  Feast  of  St.  John  the  Baptist.  Neither  aunt 
nor  niece  had  forgotten  her  little  African  friend  in  the 
morning  prayers  at  St.  Salvador's,  for  it  was  the  day  on 
which  she  was  to  be  received  into  the  Ark  of  Christ's 
Church,  and  they  had  prayed  that,  like  the  Saint  whose 
virtues  they  had  been  celebrating,  she  might  have  strength 
constantly  to  speak  the  truth,  boldly  rebuke  vice,  and 
patiently  suffer  for  the  truth's  sake.  And  now  they  were 
seated  at  their  books  again. 

"  I  wonder  if  the  Baptism  is  over  now,"  said  Joan. 

"  If  so,  there  is  one  more  Christian  in  the  world," 
answered  Mrs.  Askell. 

"  Then  to  be  christened  is  to  be  made  a  Christian,  I 
did  not  see  it  before." 

"And  what  is  a  Christian?" 

"  A  believer  in  Christ." 

"  Closer  to  Him  than  that.     Ask  your  Catechism. 
'Wherein  I  was  made' — what?" 
"  A  member  of  Christ." 

"  Yes ;  a  member  or  limb  of  that  Body  of  His,  which  is 
the  Church.  We  have  spoken  of  this  before;  do  you 
understand  it?" 

"  Not  fully,  I  am  afraid." 


HOLY  BAPTISM. 


"  Our  Lord,  now  ascended  into  the  Heavens,  has,  as  it 
were,  two  bodies :  one,  that  in  which  He  suffered,  died, 
and  rose  again— the  human  appearance  ;  the  other,  mys- 
lical  {i.e.  above  our  human  understanding),  but  no  less 
real ;  and  this  is  His  representative  on  earth,  the  Church, 
made  up  of  'us  many.'  Into  this  we  are  born  again  in 
baptism  {see  i  Cor.  xii.  13),  'By  one  Spirit  are  we  all 
baptized  into  one  Body.'  Thus,  baptized  Christians  are, 
or  ought  to  be,  as  close  to  one  another  as  limbs  of  one 
body :  so  that  if  '  one  member  suffer,  all  the  members 
suffer  with  it.'  You  and  I  are,  therefore,  to-day  brought 
into  close  spiritual  connexion  with  our  little  Etheldreda, 
and  though  parted  by  sea  and  land,  we  may  meet  her  at 
God's  footstool  in  prayer. 

"To-day,  singularly  enough,  our  Prayer- Book  notation 
continues  at  the  ministration  of  Holy  Baptism. 

"  The  exhortation,  '  Dearly  beloved,'  is  based  on  an 
ancient  model,  and  partly  suggested  by  '  Hermann's  Con- 
sultation and  the  prayer  following  was  translated  from 
the  old  Latin  by  Luther;  while  the  next,  'Almighty  and 
Immortal  God,'  comes  from  the  old  Baptismal  Office. 
The  short  Gospel  was  first  added  in  1549,  the  parallel 
passage  in  St.  Matthew  having  previously  stood  here. 
The  address  and  prayer  following  are  from  Hermann." 

Joan  noted  these  things,  as  also  that  the  "  Dearly 
beloved,  ye  have  brought  this  child,"  was  composed  in 
1549,  from  a  similar  one  in  Hermann's  book,  and  that 
the  following  demands  were  similar  to  those  in  the  old 
office.  She  also  noted  the  verbal  differences  between  the 
creed  as  given  here  and  in  the  Morning  Service. 

"  The  four  short  prayers,  beginning,  '  O  merciful  God,' 
etc.,  stood,  in  1549,  separately,  with  some  differences,  at 
the  end  of  the  office,  serving  for  a  consecration  of  the 
water.    But  the  Reformer  Bucer,  fearing  this  would  lead 


'54 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


people  to  think  a  sort  of  magic  was  U3ed  (a  needless  fear, 
for  prayer  is  far  above  magic),  the  portions  now  remaining 
were  placed  in  their  present  position  in  1552. 

"  Now  we  come  to  the  actual  baptism.  Baptism  was 
first  performed  by  ijnmersion—t\\:it  is,  plunging  the  child 
or  person  in  the  water,  as  we  find  St.  Paul  speaking  of 
burying  by  baptism  (Rom.  vi.  4 ;  Col.  ii.  12),  as  if  the 
act  was  in  appearance  a  drowning  or  annihilation.  Soon 
the  immersions  were  three,  in  allusion  to  the  Trinity,  or  to 
Christ's  lying  three  days  in  the  grave.  In  the  thirteenth 
or  fourteenth  century,  affusion,  or  'pouring-on,'was  general, 
as  immersion  was  found  to  be  in  many  cases  dangerous 
to  health.  In  1549  the  order  was  put  here  that  the  child 
shall  be  dipped  into  the  water  discreetly  and  warily,  or  if 
weak,  the  water  shall  be  poured  on  it.  In  our  cold  climate 
it  is  now  found  always  best  to  use  affusion  only ;  but 
remember  (if  any  one  objects  to  this)  that  immersion  is 
the  rule  of  our  Church,  and  it  can  be  performed  if  required ; 
no  one  need  leave  the  Church  for  a  scruple  of  that  kind. 

"The  words  of  baptism  are  from  our  Saviour's  own 
injunction.  (St.  Matt,  xxviii.  19.)  In  those  holy  words 
we  beheve  the  Spirit  is  pleased  to  descend  upon  the  child, 
till  then  a  child  of  Adam,  a  mere  human  being ;  after 
that  a  child  of  God,  in  a  higher  sense  than  that  in  which 
we  are  His  children  by  creation." 

"  Dear  aunt,  I  once  heard  some  one  say  such  a  change 
was  impossible  ;  he  said  it  would  be  magic." 

"  Mystical,  not  magical,  dear  child.  What  says  Keble? — 

*'  *  A  few  calm  words  of  faith  aiid  prayer, 
A  few  bright  drops  of  holy  dew. 
Shall  work  a  wonder  there. 

Earth's  charmers  never  knew."' 

Did  not  the  Spirit  descend  visibly  upon  our  Lord  ?  " 

*  T/u  Christian  Year.    (Holy  Baptism.) 


HOL  Y  BAPTISM. 


"  Yes,  indeed." 

"  And  upon  the  Apostles  ?" 

"  Yes." 

"  Since,  therefore,  we  see  that  the  Spirit  has  descended 
on  men,  I  will  only  give  you  these  texts,  which  you  will 
consider  carefully  and  thoughtfully  when  you  have  time,  to 
see  what  extreme  importance  our  Lord  and  His  Apostles 
laid,  not  on  baptism  only,  which  was  already  known  under 
John  and  others,  but  on  baptism  by  the  Holy  Ghost :  St. 
John  iii.  5  ;  St.  Mark  xvi.  16  ;  St.  Matt,  xxviii.  19  ;  Acts 
ii.  38  ;  and  I  Peter  iii.  21  ;  and  others  you  can  find  for 
yourself. 

"  We  have  then  seen  our  dear  child  (let  us  thinik  of  our 
own  Etheldreda)  named  in  the  name  of  the  Holy  Trinity, 
as  Keble  says  again  : — 

*'*Once  in  His  Name  Who  made  thee, 

Once  in  His  Name  Who  died  for  thee. 
Once  in  His  Name  Who  lives  to  aid  thee, 
We  plunge  thee  in  Love's  boundless  Sea.'* 

"  And  now  the  little  soul  must  be  reared  as  it  best  may 
on  the  bosom  of  its  dear  Mother  Church,  with  the  strong 
loving  hand  of  the  Spirit  to  guide  it  right.  And  the  Spirit 
in  the  Church  does  lead  it,  through  the  ordained  means, 
prayer  and  preaching  and  wise  instruction  (see  the  address 
to  god-parents  at  the  end,  added  in  1549)  ;  and  when  the 
soul  begins  to  feel  what  it  owes  to  God  and  to  its  neigh- 
bour, the  promises  made  by  the  sponsors  are  publicly 
ratified  in  confirmation.  This  is  generally  performed  at 
an  age  when  childhood  is  passing  away,  and  cares  and 
troubles  come  ;  but  an  added  privilege  and  help  is  given, 
the  great  support  of  Holy  Communion.  So  from  birth  to 
death  the  Church  stands  our  friend,  and  never  fails  us. 

"  Lyra  Iiimccntiiim.    (The  Most  Holy  Name.) 


156 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK, 


"  The  Office  for  Private  Baptism  needs  no  special 
notice,  except  that  you  will  see  in  several  of  the  rubrics 
that  such  baptism  is  always  to  be  performed  by  some 
lawful  minister.  Yet  as,  in  case  of  the  child's  extreme 
illness,  baptism  is  absolutely  essential,  these  words  may, 
in  such  case,  be  held  to  mean  '  any  baptized  person,'  the 
word  minister  signifying  here  merely  that  such  a  person 
administers  the  Sacrament ;  for  doubtless  baptism  con- 
ferred by  any  christened  person  with  the  element  of  water 
in  the  name  of  the  Blessed  Trinity  is  vahd.  This  is  a 
charitable  allowance,  so  that  in  cases  of  absolute  necessity 
baptism  may  not  be  withheld  on  account  of  the  impossi- 
bility of  calling  a  minister  (such  as  may  occur  in  the 
Colonies).  But  should  a  child  so  baptized  recover,  and 
be  brought  to  the  clergy  man,  he  would  baptize  it  with  the 
form  at  the  end  of  the  Private  Serv  ice,  '  If  thou  art  not 
already  baptized,  N.,  I  baptize  thee,'  &c. ;  or  else,  he 
would  consult  the  Bishop  or  Archbishop,  as  ordered  in 
the  last  paragraph  of  the  second  Preface. 

"There  was,  until  1552,  a  pretty  custom  after  baptism 
of  the  putting  on  of  the  chrisom,  or  white  dress.  The 
minister  robed  the  baptized  child  or  person  in  it,  as  a 
symbol  of  innocence,  immediately  after  the  naming.  It 
was  then  laid  away,  and  kept  in  remembrance  of  the 
holy  day.  We,  however,  who  do  not  have  real  chrisoms, 
must  lay  by  us  the  remembrance  of  the  blessings  which 
fell  on  us  then. 

"  We  may  also  pass  over  the  baptism  of  such  as  are  of 
riper  years,  and  come  to  the  Catechism.  This  was  com- 
posed in  1549.  The  latter  part  on  the  Sacraments  was 
added  in  1604,  by  Overall,  Bishop  of  Norwich.  I  will 
here  give  you  a  short  list  of  such  explanations  and  illus- 
trative texts  concerning  the  Church  Catechism  as  you  will 
have  to  study  when  (as  I  hope  will  next  year  be  the  case) 


THE  CATECHISM. 


you  prepare  for  the  Cambridge  Local  Examination  at 
Barminster." 

The  paper  which  Mrs.  Askell  put  into  Joan's  hands, 
and  which  she  later  used  as  intended,  was  as  follows  : — 
"  The  CJnirch  Catechis^n — 

"  A  catechism  is  a  lesson  taught  by  the  mode  of  ques- 
tion and  answer.  The  teacher  is  called  the  Catechist ; 
the  learner,  the  Catechumen.  The  Church  Catechism 
teaches  us  our  duties  and  privileges  as  members  of  the 
Church.  Its  main  contents  are,  ist,  that  we  are  respon- 
sible beings  bearing  a  threefold  vow  of  Renunciation  of 
Evil,  Faith,  and  Obedience ;  2nd,  it  teaches  us  what  to 
believe  (in  the  Creed) ;  3rd,  what  to  do  (in  the  Com- 
mandments, or  Moral  Law  of  God);  4th,  how  to  seek 
the  strength  to  believe  and  to  do  aright  (in  the  Lord's 
Prayer).  To  each  of  these  Divine  lessons  an  explana- 
tion is  appended,  and  the  whole  concludes  with  Bishop 
Overall's  sound  but  rather  involved  instruction  on  the 
two  great  Sacraments  whence  we  draw  spiritual  life. 

"  jV.  or  M.  stands  for  N.  or  NN.,  name  or  names,  the 
double  initial  being  the  Latin  form  of  the  shortened 
plural.  The  M.  was  probably  a  printer's  error.  The 
name  given  at  Baptism  is  called  our  Christian  Name 
because  it  was  given  us  when  we  were  enrolled  in  the 
great  body  of  Christians.  It  is  to  us  througli  life  a  badge 
of  our  Cliristian  membership.  Such  significance  of  names 
is  shown  in  St.  Luke  i.  63  ;  Acts  xiii.  9. 

"  The  privileges  granted  to  us  in  Baptism  on  the  faith 
of  our  sponsors  and  parents  were  threefold  : — 

I.  Membership  with  Christ,  (i  Cor.  xii.  12,  13.) 

II.  Adoption  as  children  of  God.  (Gal.  iii.  26,  27.) 

III.  A  right  to  the  possession  of  the  heavenly  kingdom. 
(Rom.  viii.  15-17.) 

"  The  duties  undertaken  in  our  name  were  threefold 


158 


THE  prayer-book: 


I.  To  renounce  the  devil  and  his  works,  (i  John  iii. 
8-IO.) 

II.  To  believe  all  the  Articles  (or  essential  parts)  of  the 
Christian  faith.  (St.  Mark  xvi.  15,  16.) 

III.  To  obey  God's  will.  (St.  Matt.  vii.  21.) 

The  vow  of  renunciation  is  again  threefold :  we  are  to 
renounce — ist,  Satan,  the  Tempter  himself,  as  our  great 
Master  renounced  and  resisted  him ;  2nd,  we  are  to  give 
up  the  pomps  and  vanity  of  the  wicked  world,  i.  e.  the 
lying  whispers  of  our  own  hearts,  pomps  and  vanity  being 
all  those  vain  shews  which  we  allow  to  draw  us  from  God ; 
3rd,  we  are  to  give  up  the  sinful  lusts  of  the  flesh,  i.e. 
inclinations  to  sins  of  the  body,  such  as  idleness,  gluttony, 
and  the  like. 

"  We  next  state  our  gratitude  that  God  has  by  means 
of  Baptism,  on  condition  of  our  fulfilling  the  above  pro- 
mises, called  us  to  a  state  of  salvation ;  i.  e.  placed  us  in  a 
road  leading  towards  eternal  life,  and  we  humbly  pray 
that  we  may  continue  in  it.  Here  we  must  observe  that 
the  kingdom  which  we  inherit,  and  the  eternal  life  we 
hope  for,  are  less  a  state  of  joy  after  death  than  a  state  of 
blessed  holiness  which  may  begin  for  us  here.  (St.  Luke 
xvii.  21.) 

"  The  Creed  or  Belief  is  wholly  based  on  Scripture,  and 
proveable  by  it. 
'  I  believe  in 

'God  the  Father  (i  Cor.  viii.  6) 

'  Almighty  (Rev.  iv.  8), 

'  Maker  of  Heaven  and  Earth  (Gen.  i.  i) : 

'  And  in  Jesus  (St.  Luke  i.  31 :  Jesus,  a  Saviour) 

'  Christ  (St.  Luke  ix.  20 :  Christ,  the  Anointed) 

'  His  only  Son  (St.  John  iii.  16) 

'  Our  Lord  (St.  John  xiii.  13), 

'  Who  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost  (St.  Luke  i.  35), 


THE  CREED. 


159 


*  Born  of  the  Virgin  Mary  (St.  Luke  ii.  7), 

'Suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate  (St.  Mark  xv.  1$), 

'Was  crucified  (St.  Mark  xv.  25), 

'  Dead  (St.  John  xix.  30), 

'And  buried  (St.  John  xix.  41,  42), 

'  He  descended  into  hell  (St.  Luke  xxiii.  43 ;  i  Peter 
iii.  19 :  Hell,  i.  e.  Hades,  the  resting-place  of  de- 
parted spirits  until  the  day  of  judgment) ; 

'  The  third  day  He  rose  again  from  the  dead  (St.  Luke 
xviii.  33 ;  xxiv.  6,  7  ;  Acts  ii.  24), 

'  He  ascended  into  heaven  (Acts  i.  9), 

'And  sitteth  at  the  right  hand  of  God  (Acts  vii.  56; 
Paalm  ex.  I :  the  right  hand  of  God,  i.  e.  the  place 
of  highest  power) ; 

'  From  thence  He  shall  come  to  judge  the  quick  and 
the  dead.  (St.  Matt.  xxv.  31-33;  i  Thess.  iv.  16, 17) 

'  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost  (St.  John  xiv.  26) ; 

'The  Holy  Catholic  Church  (i  Cor.  xii.  12,  13); 
Catholic,  i.  e.  universal,  or  according  to  the  doctrine 
which  has  universally  been  held  by  men  inspired 
by  God) ; 

'  The  Communion  of  Saints  (Rom.  xii.  5) ; 

'  The  Forgiveness  of  Sins  (i  John  ii.  1,2); 

'The  Resurrection  of  the  Body  (i  Cor.  xv.  20,  21; 
Job  xix.  26,  27), 

'And  the  Life  Everlasting.'  (Dan.  xii.  2,  3.) 

The  Commandments,  comprising  the  moral  law  which 
God  has  placed  eternally  in  man's  heart,  and  which  our 
Saviour  has  endorsed  and  exemplified  as  all  fulfilled  by 
the  law  of  love  (St.  Matt.  xxii.  36-40),  may  be  thus  tested 
by  the  New  Testament  Scriptures  : — 

"The  same  which  God  spake,  &c.  (St.  Matt.  v.  17,  19.) 

Commandment  i.    St.  Matt.  iv.  10. 
„  ii.    2.  Cor.  vi.  16. 


i6o 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


iii. 

St.  Matt.  V.  34. 

iv. 

St.  Mark  ii.  27,  28. 

(Compare  Isaiah  Iviii.  13,  14.) 

V. 

Col.  iii.  20. 

vi. 

St.  Matt.  V.  21,  22. 

vii. 

I  Tim.  ii.  9,  10. 

viii. 

Eph.  iv.  28. 

„  ix.*  James  iv.  11 ;  St.  Matt.  v.  37. 

„  X.    St.  Mark  x.  24  ;  St.  Luke  xii.  15. 

We  shall  observe  in  the  explanation  that  the  Com- 
mandments are  paraphrased  as  follows  : — 

I.  My  duty  towards  God  is  to  believe  in  Him  .  .  .  my 

strength. 

II.  To  worship  Him  .  .  .  call  upon  Him. 

III.  To  honour  His  holy  name  and  His  word. 

IV.  To  serve  Him  truly  all  the  days  of  my  life  (the 
Sabbath  or  rest-day  being  set  apart  like  the  tithe 
of  our  goods,  as  a  sign  that  all  belongs  to  God). 

V.  Tu  love,  honour,  and  succour  ...  all  my  betters. 

VI.  To  hurt  nobody  by  word  or  deed. 

VII.  To  keep  my  body  in  temperance,  soberness,  and 
chastity. 

VIII.  To  be  true  and  just  in  all  my  dealings;  to  bear 
no  malice  or  hatred  in  my  heart  (because  hatred 
steals  from  our  brother  his  due  of  love) ;  to  keep 
my  hands  from  picking  and  stealing. 

IX.  To  keep  my  tongue  from  evil  speaking,  lying,  and 
slandering. 

X.  Not  to  covet  .  .  .  please  God  to  call  me. 

The  Lord's  Prayer  is  now  added  to  show  us  the  divine 
model  on  which  all  our  prayers  should  be  framed,  inas- 
much as  we  cannot  perform  any  duty  ■v\  ithout  God's  aid, 

*  Hebrew  scholars  assert  that  the  meaning  of  the  Commandment  is 
rallier,  "  Thou  shah  not  bear  false  witness  to  thy  neighbour." 


PARAPHRASE  OF  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER.  i6i 


obtained  by  prayer.  We  shall  observe  that  in  this  perfect 
prayer,  our  Lord  teaches  us  first  to  place  ourselves  in  the 
attitude  of  children  towards  our  Father,  humbly  and  trust- 
fully ;  then  to  ask  Him  Jirsf,  that  He  may  be  glorified, 
and  His  blessed  will,  not  ours,  be  done  ;  secondly,  for  our 
bodily  and  spiritual  needs,  concluding  with  praise  to  Him 
who  doth  and  giveth  all. 

"  The  Catechism  paraphrases  it  thus  : — 
*Our  Father,  which  art  in  Heaven' — I  desire  my  Lord 

God  our  Heavenly  Father,  who  is  the  giver  .... 

people.  (St.  Matt.  vii.  ii.) 
'Hallowed  be  Thy  Name' — That  we  may  worship  Him. 

(St.  Matt.  V.  1 6.) 
'  Thy  kingdom  come' — Serve  Him.  (St.  Matt.  v.  19.) 
*  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  Heaven ' — And 

obey  Him  as  we  ought  to  do.  (S.  Matt.  vii.  21.) 
'  Give  t(s  this  day  our  daily  bread' — And  I  pray  unto 

God  that  ....  souls  and  bodies.  (St.  Matt.  iv.  4.) 
'And  forgive  us  our  trespasses  as  we  forgive  them  that 

trespass  against         And  that  He  will  be  merciful 

unto  us,  and  forgive  us  our  sins.  (St.  Matt.  vi.  14, 15.) 
'And  lead  us  ?iot  into  temptation,  but  deliver  tts  frotn 

evil' — And  that  it  will  please  Him  ....  everlasting 

death.  (St.  James  i.  13,  14  ;  St.  John  xvii.  15.) 
In  Bishop  Overall's  addition  concerning  the  Sacra- 
ments, we  may  observe  : — 

I.  That  they  are  generally  necessary,  i.e.  necessary 
for  all  men  in  general. 

IL  That  a  Sacrament,  to  be  truly  one,  must  be  an  out- 
ward sign  of  an  inward  grace  ;  and  that  the  sign  must 
have  been  ordained  by  Christ  Himself  as  a  means  by 
which  we  receive  the  grace.  To  these  tests,  only  Baptism 
and  the  Lord's  Supper  will  answer.  (See  Article  xxv.) 
in.  That  to  valid  Baptism  the  fw/y  essentials  are,  that 
M 


l62 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


the  person  be  baptised  with  water  in  the  Name  of  the 
Trinity,  and  that  it  testifies  to  our  death  to  sin,  and  birth 
into  new  life.  (See  Rom.  vi.  4.) 

IV.  That  repentance  and  faith  are  necessary  for  Bap- 
tism, but  (as  Christ  has  expressed  His  abhorrence  of 
those  who  would  keep  children  from  Him — St.  Mark  x. 
14),  we  believe  that  the  repentance  and  faith  of  parents 
and  sponsors  are  accepted  for  those  of  the  children. 

V.  That  the  Lord's  Supper  reminds  us  of  the  great 
sacrifice  once  made  for  us,  and  that  by  it  we  remind 
our  Heavenly  F"ather  of  the  same,  and  plead  by  its  virtue 
with  Him  ;  that  its  signs  of  bread  and  wine  become 
verily  and  indeed  to  the  faithful  that  Holy  Body  and 
Blood  which  will  strengthen  them  against  temptation,  and 
refresh  them  for  their  duty. 

VI.  That  self-examination  is  necessary  for  the  fit  re- 
ception of  the  Holy  Communion.  For  this  each  of  us  is 
responsible  for  himself.  The  points  of  examination  are 
(ci)  Do  we  repent  of  our  old  sins  ?  [p)  Do  we  purpose  to 
lead  the  new  hfe?  {c)  Have  we  a  living  fath  in  God's 
mercy  through  Christ  ?  [A  living  faith  is  faith  w  hich  shows 
itself  in  our  lives.]  id)  Do  we  remember  His  death  with 
love  and  gratitude?  {e)  So  remembering  what  -we  owe 
to  God,  do  we  feel  a  warm  love  towards  our  fellow-man 
— such  love  as  would  enable  us  to  pray  for  him,  to  help 
him,  and  to  ask  his  pardon  if  we  have  offended  him; 
such  love  as  will  stand  the  test  of  St.  Matt.  v.  23,  24  ? 

"  Now  comes  the  Confirmation  Service,  brought  into 
form  in  1661.  Confirmation  is  an  apostolic  rite,  as  we 
learn  from  Acts  viii.  14-17  ;  xix.  5,  6  ;  and  Heb.  vi.  2.  The 
miraculous  powers  then  conferred  by  laying  on  of  hands 
have  been  withdrawn,  but  the  rite  is  continued  in  faith  in 
the  unseen  gift  of  grace,  to  which  the  gifts  did  but  testify. 

"  In  the  ancient  Church,  and  in  England  as  late  as 


CONFIRMA  TION.  163 

the  eighth  century,  Confirmation  followed  immediately  on 
Baptism  if  the  Bishop  were  present,  even  in  the  case  of 
an  infant.  The  person  was  at  the  same  time  anointed. 
In  the  Eastern  Church  priests  are  allowed  to  confirm. 

"There  is  a  twofold  aspect  in  Confirmation  ;  first,  we 
are  confirmed  or  strengthened  by  the  Paraclete ;  *  secondly, 
we  confirm  our  Baptismal  vows. 

"  The  Preface  was  originally  a  rubric,  not  appointed  to 
be  read  in  the  service  till  1662.  Until  that  time,  the 
candidates  were  publicly  examined  in  the  Catechism  ; 
but  the  demand,  '  Do  ye  here,'  &c.,  was  then  inserted 
instead,  private  instruction  by  a  clergyman  being  relied 
upon.  The  preface  and  demand  are  from  Hermann! s 
Consultation. 

"The  Collect,  Almighty  and  Everliving  God,  who 
hast  vouchsafed,  &c.,  is  from  the  Greek  office,  and  from 
the  Sacramentary  of  Gelasius.  It  is  founded  on  Isaiah 
xi.  2,  the  Spirit  of  True  Godliness  being  added  to  the  six 
there  enumerated  to  complete  the  mystic  number  seven, 
meaning  all  divine  gifts. 

"The  Collect,  Almighty  and  Everliving  God,  is  from 
Hermann's  Consultation.  That  beginning  O  Almi'  hty 
Lord  was  inserted  at  the  last  review. 

"The  rubric  requiring  confirmation  before  the  recep- 
tion of  the  Holy  Communion  is  from  the  Sarum 
Manual. 

"  The  blessing  is  derived  entirely  from  English  sources, 
and  is  the  same  as  the  latter  part  of  that  to  the  Commu- 
nion Office. 

"The  first  great  use  of  Confirmation  is  to  prepare 
ourselves,  to  qualify  ourselves,  for  that  service  of  the  Holy 
Communion  which  is  the  strongest  help  and  support  of  a 
Christian  in  all  trials.    But  that  is  not  all.    We  then,  by 

*  i.e.  the  Comforter. 


i64 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


the  laying  on  of  hands,  obtain  again  the  Spirit's  help.  In 
baptism  He  was  to  us  the  Giver  of  life.  (St.  John  iii.  1-5.) 
In  confirmation,  He  is  the  Comforter  to  make  us  strong. 
(St.  John  xiv.  26  ;  Col.  i.  11.)  Baptism  and  confirmation 
together  form  one  completed  part  of  His  work  in  us. 

"  Thus  we  have  three  benefits :  qualification  for  be- 
coming communicants  ;  the  gift  of  the  Spirit ;  and  thirdly, 
the  honourable  duty  of  taking  on  ourselves  the  promises 
made  for  us  at  our  baptism." 

"But  it  seems  to  me  such  a  responsibility  to  do  that!" 

"  You  are  as  much  bound  by  those  promises  if  you  do 
not  renew  them  by  confirmation.  In  neglecting  this  rite, 
you  only  show  scorn  of  God's  help  in  keeping  them. 

"  Again,  confirmation  is  a  crisis  in  the  life  of  a  boy  or 
girl,  and  brings,  accompanied  with  good  instruction  and 
holy  influences,  that  very  sense  of  responsibility  which 
must  otherwise  soon  come  in  the  form  of  trial  or  tempta- 
tion." 

"  It  is  beautiful  to  be  confirmed  in  white.  It  reminds 
one  of  one's  chrisom." 

"  Yes ;  of  that  chrisom  of  purity  which  we  should  all 
keep — of  which  Keble  speaks  in  this  little  poem  on 
'White  Apparel,'  in  the  ^  Lyra  Iimocentiion.' 

"'THE  SUNDAY  DRESS. 
"  '  Blessed  is  he  that  watclieth  and  keepeth  his  garments." 
"  '  So  keep  thou,  by  calm  prayer  and  searcHng  thought, 
Thy  chrisom  pure,  that  still  as  weeks  roll  by. 
And  Heaven  rekindles,  gladdening  earth  and  sky. 
The  glow  that  from  the  grave  our  Champion  brought. 
Pledge  of  high  victory  by  His  dread  wounds  wrought. 
Thou  mayst  put  on  the  garb  of  punty, 
And  from  thy  prayer  look  up  with  open  eye  ; 
Him  owning,  who  from  shame  and  sinful  blot 
Hath  kept  thee  safe,  nor  suffered  base  desire 
Thy  soul  to  haunt,  unhallowing  the  good  hour. 


VEIL  OF  CONFIRMATION. 


165 


Then  on  thy  way  to  church  rejoicing  fare. 
Yet  heedful,  gathering  up  from  earthly  mire 
The  glittering  folds  :  for  even  in  Sunday  air 
Foul  spirits  love  to  lurk  with  tainting  power.' 

"  And,  dear  child,"  continued  Mrs.  Askell,  "  remember 
to  strive  to  keep  your  chrisom  pure.  Oh  !  you  do  not 
know  what  good  even  a  young  girl  may  do  by  remaining 
spotless  in  heart  and  mind,  not  free  indeed  from  cogni- 
zance of  evil  (that  she  can  hardly  be),  but  from  taint  of 
likeness  with  it,  tampering  with  it,  longing  for  it ;  and  all 
this  by  remaining  so  close  at  her  Saviour's  side  that  His 
whiteness  makes  her  shun  the  darkness  of  sin." 

Joan's  hand  lay  in  her  aunt's.  Both  were  quiet  for  a 
few  moments.    Then  Mrs.  Askell  resumed  : — 

"  Do  you  know  why  girls  wear  veils  or  caps  at  confir- 
mation ?" 

"  No — o  ;  I  don't  think  I  do." 

"  Because,  in  the  first  place,  it  would  be  too  unseemly 
to  appear  before  the  Bishop  in  a  bonnet,  on  which  he 
should  lay  his  hand.  And  yet  women  must  have  a 
covering,  as  it  is  said  in  i  Cor.  xi.  6.  And  in  the  tenth 
verse,  which  seems  rather  mysterious,  we  have  a  direct 
injunction  on  this  point,  for  it  means  :  The  woman  ought 
to  have  power,  i.e.  a  covering,  on  her  head  before  the 
Angel  or  Bishop.  The  veil  or  cap,  being  the  simplest 
head-covering,  is  therefore  used.  One  word  I  must  add 
here,  that  in  spite  of  all  the  pleasant  symbolism  of  white 
dress  and  veil,  the  great  point  for  a  girl  at  confirmation  is 
to  have  the  whiteness  in  her  heart,  and  that  it  would  be 
far  better  to  go  to  that  rite  in  any  we  ll-worn  garb  than  to 
run  the  least  risk  of  vanity  or  of  a  mind  preoccupied  with 
dress. 

"Now  we  come  to  the  Marriage  Service.  First  the 
banns  (from  bannum,  Latin,  an  edict)  are  to  be  given  out 


i66 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


for  three  weeks  running ;  they  are  here  said  after  the 
second  Lesson.  The  real  rule  is  that  they  should  be  read 
after  the  Nicene  Creed,  where  they  interrupt  the  service 
less.  They  are  only  to  be  said  after  the  second  Lesson 
in  afternoon  services  where  there  is  no  morning  service  ; 
the  present  direction  is  a  printer's  error.  But  the  matter 
is  not  of  great  consequence.  The  change  in  practice  was 
probably  made  because,  the  Nicene  Creed  being  read  in 
the  chancel,  the  banns  were  less  audible  from  thence  than 
from  the  reading-desk ;  and  clearness  in  the  names  is 
desirable." 

"  Is  it  not  rather  vulgar  to  be  'married  by  banns,'  as 
people  say?" 

"Vulgar  or  no,  it  is  right.  Why  should  people  be 
ashamed  of  proclaiming  openly  in  God's  house  one  of 
the  most  solemn  changes  of  their  lives,  and  one  on  which 
they  specially  desire  His  blessing.? 

"  The  address,  '  Dearly  beloved,'  is  from  the  Sarum 
Manual  and  from  Hermann.  That  solemn  one  to  the 
couple,  'I  require  and  charge  you,'  was  altered  in  1549 
from  the  York  Use.  The  espousals  are  from  the  ancient 
order.  The  blessing  is  altered  from  the  Sarum  Use. 
Here  ends  the  true  wedding.  The  pair  are  now  man 
and  wife.  This  part  of  the  ceremony  was  (and  now 
again  often  is)  performed  in  the  body  of  the  Church ; 
the  pair  then  move  to  the  Altar,  preceded  by  the  clergy- 
man, the  Psalm  being  recited  or  sung. 

"  During  the  prayer, '  O  God,  who  by  Thy  mighty  power,' 
it  was  anciently  the  custom  to  hold  a  veil  over  the  kneeling 
pair.  This  is  still  done  in  the  Roman  Church.  It  is  a  form 
derived  even  from  heathen  days. 

"  It  was  the  intention  of  our  Reformers,  as  of  the  ancient 
Church,  that  the  newly-married  pair  should  receive  the 
Holy  Communion  inmiediately  after  the  ceremony.  This 


COMMUNION  OF  THE  SICK.  167 


rule  was  dropped  in  deference  to  the  Puritans,  or  else 
because  many  were  married  in  the  Church  who  were  not 
communicants.  Nowadays  the  good  custom  is  being 
revived  ;  but,  truth  to  tell,  it  seems  to  me  somewhat  in- 
congruous with  the  pomp  of  our  weddings.  But  whether 
the  finery  or  the  Communion  should  be  discontinued, 
does  not  seem  hard  to  judge. 

"The  Order  for  the  Visitation  of  the  Sick  is  mainly 
from  the  Sarum  Manual  ;  the  prayer,  '  O  most  merciful 
God,'  is  from  the  Gelasian  Sacramentary. 

"  The  blessing, '  The  Almighty  Lord,'  was  composed  in 
1549;  that  following,  '  LPnto  God's  gracious  mercy,'  &c., 
was  placed  here  in  1661,  adapted  from  the  Jewish  form. 
The  four  following  prayers  were  also  added  in  1661. 

"  In  the  Communion  of  the  Sick,  the  merciful  rubric 
which  bids  the  priest  assure  a  dying  penitent  unable  to 
communicate,  that  his  will  is  received  by  God  for  the  act 
is  adopted  from  the  Office  of  Extreme  Unction. 

"  And  now,  the  Christian  having  held  to  his  Prayer- 
Book,  as  to  a  line  uniting  him  to  his  Maker,  through  all 
the  changes  of  life,  receives  over  his  dead  body  its  last 
blessed  words  of  faith  and  hope.  That  suicides,  or  the 
unbaptized,  should  not  be  buried  by  this  service  (as  the 
iiibric,  placed  in  1661,  ordains)  is  certainly,  though  sadly, 
just.  We  leave  such  persons  to  God,  but  we  dare  not 
say  we  leave  them  in  '  sure  and  certain  hope.' 

"  Of  the  opening  texts,  the  ist  expresses  Faith  ;  the 
2nd,  Patience  ;  the  3rd,  Thanks.  To  St.  Paul's  words  on 
Resurrection  nothing  could  be  added,  and  wisely  they  are 
left  to  carry  their  own  sweet  message  to  the  bereaved. 

"  The  symbolic  action  of  casting  earth  on  the  coffin  is 
extremely  ancient.  In  the  unreformed  Church  it  was 
sprinkled  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  and  incense  and  holy 
water  were  scattered  too.    The  following  commendation 


i68 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


'  Forasmuch  as  it  hath  pleased,'  is  altered  and  enlarged 
from  the  old  service.    The  concluding  prayers  date  from 

ISS2. 

"Here  we  should  almost  close  the  book;  for  of  the 
Churching  and  Commination  Services  I  need  only  say 
they  are  of  mediaeval  origin,  and  the  Forms  of  Prayer  to 
be  Used  at  Sea  are  simply  fitting  additions  to  the  usual 
liturgy  to  be  used  on  board  ship,  and  were  added  in  1662. 
The  services  which  follow,  in  old  Prayer-Books,  for  the 
5th  of  November,  Gunpowder  Treason  ;  for  the  29th  of 
May,  Charles  11. 's  birthday  and  restoration;  and  for 
January  30th,  a  fast  for  the  illegal  execution  of  Charles  I., 
were  composed  late,  and  it  is  now  well  they  should  be 
abolished.  There  are  still  one  or  two  things  to  speak  of : 
the  Articles  of  Religion,  which  were  settled  in  1571,  and 
which  you  will  do  well  to  read  through  carefully  now  and 
then  ;  the  old-fashioned  rhymed  version  of  the  Psalms, 
found  in  old  Prayer-Books,  composed  by  Tate  and  Brady, 
and  printed  in  1696  (William  III.'s  reign),  and  the  older 
and  more  forcible  version,  which  you  have  probably  never 
met  with,  by  Sternhold  and  Hopkins,  printed  in  1549 — 
1562.    And  then  there  are  the  Ordination  Services. 

"There  are,  you  see,  orders  for  ordaining  Bishops, 
priests,  and  deacons,  the  only  orders  appointed  by  the 
Apostles.  In  the  unreformed  Church  there  were  four 
lower  orders ;  subdeacons,  exorcists,  readers,  and  porters. 
The  time  for  ordination  is  in  the  Ember  weeks,  of  which 
we  have  spoken,  and  I  told  you  of  the  need  of  prayer 
that  hands  may  be  laid  only  on  fit  men,  for  on  our  priests 
how  much  of  our  Church's  welfare  hangs  !  The  services 
are  those  which  ha\  e  been  used  for  ages,  but  simphfied 
at  the  Reformation." 

"  1  thought,  dear  aunt,"  said  Joan,  "that  there  were  but 
three  kinds  of  ministers.  Bishops,  priests,  and  deacons. 


ECCLESIASTICS. 


169 


and  I  have  wondered,  since  you  told  me  so,  what  Canon 
Gibson  and  Archdeacon  Bates  are." 

"Priests  of  higher  rank.  The  three  great  orders 
represent  different  spiritual  gifts  ;  the  other  ecclesiastical 
titles  are  mere  symbols  of  honour.    Thus  we  have — 


and  Deacons,  of  which  order  there  is  now  no  subdivision, 
though  there  were  formerly  subdeacons,  who  performed 
minor  offices." 

"What  are  the  offices  of  all  these  people?" 

"The  Archbishop  is  set  over  all  the  other  clergy. 
There  are  two  Archbishops  in  England— of  Canterbury 
and  York,  but  the  former  is  Primate,  or  first  priest  in  the 
land,  taking  precedence  of  the  Archbishop  of  York, 
although  he  has  no  jurisdiction  over  him. 

"A  Metropolitan  is  a  Bishop  or  Archbishop  set  over 
other  Bishops  in  a  certain  district.  He  is  so  called  from 
his  see  being  formerly  the  mother  city,  or  metropolis,  of 
the  district. 

"The  Bishop  has  power  to  ordain  and  to  confirm  ;  he 
is  himself  consecrated  by  three  Bishops,  so  that  we  may 
be  sure  that  if  by  any  chance  one,  or  even  two,  of  them 
had  not  been  rightly  consecrated,  or  had  not  the  true  suc- 
cession, it  would  be  a  thing  so  strange  as  to  be  beyond 
possibility  that  all  three  should  be  so.  Thus  is  ensured 
the  true  succession  in  our  Bishops.  They  are  also  Over- 
seers, as  their  Greek  name  Episcopos*  signifies,  and 


'  Deans 
Archdeacons 
Canons 
Priests    S  Minor  Canons 


Rectors 

Vicars 

Curates 


*  E7ri(7/f07r€0,  to  watch 


[70 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


should,  and  often  do,  act  as  fathers  to  all  the  clergy  under 
them  in  their  see  or  seat.  A  Bishop's  chair  (cathedra) 
gives  its  name  to  the  Cathedral,  yet  is  the  Bishop  not  the 
head  in  the  cathedral.  It  is,  generally  speaking,  the 
Dean  (from  decanus,  a  ruler  over  ten  monks)  who  has 
rule  over  that  building  with  all  its  services  and  arrange- 
ments ;  and  with  him  are  associated  the  Canons,  who  are 
clergy  connected  with  a  Cathedral,  forming  what  is  called 
the  Chapter,  or  Committee  of  Clerg\-.  They,  with  the  Dean, 
meet  to  settle  points  under  their  jurisdiction  in  a  building 
called  the  chapter-house,  attached  to  every  Cathedral.  It 
was  often  many-sided,  with  seats  around  the  walls. 

"There  is  an  officer  called  a  Rural  Dean,  generally 
the  rector  of  a  parish,  who  holds  a  certain  position  of 
honour  and  overseeing  among  the  neighbouring  clergy. 

"An  Archdeacon  aids  the  Bishop  in  visiting  his  see. 
There  is  generally  more  than  one  Archdeacon  in  a  dio- 
cese. At  one  time  a  Bishop  was  aided  in  the  same  way 
by  an  officer  called  Chorepiscopus. 

"Here  let  me  mention  that  some  of  our  Bishops  are 
wisely  reviving  an  office  of  Suffragan  Bishop ;  /.  e.  a 
consecrated  Bishop,  capable  of  ordaining  and  confirm- 
ing, but  not  enjoying  the  large  revenue  and  scat  in 
Parliament  which  most  of  our  Bishops  have  ;  twenty-six 
Bishops  are  regarded  as  Peers  ef  the  realm,  and  as  we 
have  twenty-eight,  the  Bishop  of  Sodor  and  Man  and  the 
junior  or  latest  appointed  Bishop  are  omitted  from  the 
Ust,  except  those  of  London,  Winchester,  and  Durham, 
who  are  always  peers. 

"  Canons  and  Minor  Canons  are  connected  with  a 
cathedral,  and  have  a  residence  in  the  close,  or  houses 
surrounding  the  cathedral,  which  the  Canons  are  expected 
to  inhabit  three  months  in  the  year,  and  the  Minor  Canons 
continually. 


ECCLESIASTICS. 


171 


"Rectors  are  beneficed  clergy,  who  receive  the  great 
tithes  from  their  parishes,  i.  e.  a  tenth  of  the  annual  value 
of  the  land. 

"  Vicars  are  beneficed  clergy,  who  receive  the  small  or 
lesser  tithes,  or  a  tenth  part  of  the  annual  produce.  The 
value  has  now  been  commuted  to  a  money  payment,  in 
the  case  of  both  rectors  and  vicars,  to  avoid  dispute,  the 
rest  being  held  as  property  by  a  rector,  often  either  a 
layman  or  capitular  body  [i.  e.  a  body  of  men  under  one 
head,  caput),  as  for  instance  the  governing  body  of  the 
Collegeof  Christ  Church,Oxford,whichholds  many  livings. 
The  name  'vicar'  is  now  applied  also  to  beneficed  clergy 
deriving  incomes  from  other  sources  than  tithes. 

"Curates  are  clergy,  priests  or  deacons,  who  have  no 
benefice,  but  are  paid  helpers  of  other  clergy ;  as  used  in 
the  Prayer-book,  the  word  curate  means  the  man  who  has 
the  cure  or  care  of  souls  in  a  parish. 

"  How  is  a  bishop  chosen  ?" 

"The  theory  is  that  he  is  elected  by  the  Dean  and 
Chapter  of  the  cathedral ;  but  in  reality  the  Government 
fixes  on  a  man,  and  then  sends  from  the  Sovereign  to  the 
Dean  and  Chapter  a  document  called  conqe  d'dirc,  or 
leave  to  elect  this  particular  person.  Happily,  Govern- 
ment has  of  late  chosen  only  men  of  good  lives,  which  has 
delayed  a  crisis.  But  now  people  begin  to  call  for  strong 
Church  feeling  in  their  Bishops,  and  as  Government  cares 
little  enough  for  this,  the  matter  may  come  to  an  issue." 

"  What  would  be  done  if  the  Dean  and  Chapter  refused 
to  elect  the  Bishop  chosen  by  Government  ?" 

"  They  would  incur  certain  penalties,  and  no  further 
notice  would  be  taken  of  their  refusal." 

"  Has  the  Church  no  Parliament  of  its  own?" 

"  Yes  ;  a  meeting  of  clergy,  called  Convocation,  which 
assembles  in  the  Jerusalem  Chamber  at  Westminster,  by 
special  leave  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter,  for  a  short  time 


172 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


twice  a  year.  Convocation  has  long  lain  in  abeyance, 
and  has  not  much  power  yet ;  but  I  think  we  shall  see  a 
day  when  it  will  have  power." 

"  How  does  a  rector  get  a  living .'" 

"  How  is  he  presented  to  a  living,  you  should  say.  In 
various  ways.  Some  livings  belong  to  Government,  some 
to  the  Bishops,  some  to  Colleges,  some  to  private  persons 
on  whose  estates  they  are,  or  who  have  bought  them  from 
others  who  held  them  on  estates.  They  are  freely  given." 

"Yet  I  once  heard  of  a  clergyman  buying  one  for 
himself." 

"The  thing  may  be  done,  and  is  legal  under  certain 
conditions." 

"  But  what  a  pity  and  shame  that  all  the  livings  are  not 
in  the  hands  of  good  Bishops  to  give  to  the  hard  working 
curates!" 

"  Ah,  Joan,  it  is  not  of  much  use  for  women  and  girls 
to  cry  out  against  abuses.  It  is  enough  for  us  to  feel  that 
there  are  some  things  no  indignation  of  ours  can  help, 
and  to  be  thankful  for  the  blessings  we  get;  as  in  this 
case,  that  our  English  clergy,  with  very  few  exceptions, 
much  as  they  may  differ  in  opinion,  are  men  of  pure  and 
good  lives,  patterns  in  their  domestic  circle  to  the  laity 
round  about  them." 

"  I  don't  think  I  quite  understand  the  use  of  ordaining 
clergymen,"  said  Joan.  "  I  mean,  would  it  not  do  as  well 
if  they  were  set  apart  in  any  other  way?" 

"  No;  for  the  Holy  Spirit  is  given  in  ordination." 

"  I  don't  understand  it." 

" '  The  wind  blovveth  where  it  hsteth,  and  thou  hearest 
the  sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence  it  cometh, 
nor  whither  it  goeth.  So  is  every  one  that  is  born  of  the 
Spirit.'  That  is  it.  You  do  not,  you  cannot  understand, 
but  you  can  believe  that  the  Spirit  is  given  in  ordination 


ORDINATION. 


173 


as  well  as  in  baptism  and  confirmation.  This  gift  it  is 
which,  descending  by  hallowed  hands  down  from  the 
Apostles'  days  to  ours,  makes  what  is  known  as  the 
ApostoHcal  Succession." 

"  I  once  asked  a  person  what  that  meant,  and  she  said 
it  was  a  foolish  belief  that  the  clergy  were  all  descended 
from  the  Apostles  as  son  from  father." 

"  And  yet  no  doubt  that  person  was  sensible  enough  on 
some  points.  Can  one  credit  such  ignorance!  People 
treat  with  defiant  disbelief  a  doctrine  of  which  they  know 
nothing,  whereas,  if  understood,  there  is  nothing  to  alarm 
in  it.  It  is  but  plain  fact  that  the  Apostles  ordained  men 
who  ordained  others,  who  again  ordained  others,  and  so 
on,  to  our  day.  This  is  all.  But  this  is  enough.  The  gift 
of  the  Spirit  of  God  descends  on  our  priests  in  direct 
line  from  the  Apostles'  hands.  Here  is  a  noble  origin. 
Can  any  minister  find  it  in  his  heart  to  deny  such?  Many 
do.  It  seems  to  me  (to  compare  greater  things  to  small) 
like  a  scion  of  the  Percys,  or  of  the  Graemes  denying  those 
ancestors  who  have  made  his  name  illustrious." 

Joan  smiled. 

"  You  think  me  very  enthusiastic  on  this  point.  I  own 
I  have  often  wondered  at  the  strange  denials  of  so  simple 
and  safe  a  doctrine.  For  if  our  clergy  are  not  rightly 
ordained,  what  security  have  we  in  their  offices?  And  if 
the  men  who  ordained  them  were  fitly  ordained  too,  we  go 
on,  without  stop,  to  the  Apostles.  Well,  we  will  not  stay 
on  this  matter.  Read  for  yourself,  in  this  little  Catechism 
of  the  Church,  in  these  Tracts  071  Church  Principles, 
and  then  in  Theophiliis  Atiglicanus,  and  Gladstone's 
Chitrch  Principles,  and  you  will  understand  it  better. 

"  Further,  let  me  give  you  this  hymn  upon  the  subject, 
written  by  Dr.  Neale.  It  would  be  well  were  you  tc 
learn  it : — 


174 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


" '  Christ  is  gone  up  :  yet  ere  He  passed 
From  earth,  in  Heaven  to  reign. 
He  formed  one  holy  Church  to  last 
Till  He  should  come  again. 

**'His  twelve  Apostles  first  He  made 
His  ministers  of  grace  : 
And  they  their  hands  on  others  laid, 
To  fill  in  turn  their  place. 

" '  So  age  by  age,  and  year  by  year. 
His  grace  was  handed  on  ; 
And  still  the  holy  Church  is  here, 
Although  her  Lord  is  gone. 

"*Let  those  find  pardon.  Lord,  from  Thee, 
Whose  love  to  her  is  cold  : 
Bring  wanderers  in,  and  let  there  be 
One  Shepherd  and  one  fold.  Amen." 

"  So  we  close  the  book.  Will  you  use  in  church  that 
which  you  have  annotated  ?  By  that  means  you  will 
gradually  learn  by  heart  the  original  sources  of  our 
prayers,  and  I  am  convinced  that  it  adds  immensely  to 
our  deep  interest  in  them  if  we  are  made  aware  that  these 
are  the  same  thoughts  which  have  borne  upwards  the  souls 
of  so  many  generations  of  Christians. 

"  Now,  I  must  give  you  a  short,  and  very  short,  account 
of  our  Prayer-Book's  history  ;  just  so  many  dates  and 
bare  facts  as  will  serve  you  for  landmarks  in  your  future 
studies. 

"  In  597  St.  Augustine  came  to  England  and  converted 
the  King  and  Court  of  Kent,  whence  Christianity  soon 
spread  over  the  whole  country. 

In  600  St.  Augustine  revised  the  British  liturgy. 

"As  we  have  seen,  connection  with  Rome  brought 
light  to  the  English  Church  ;  but  too  soon  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  Popes  caused  the  beginning  of  a  long 
struggle  on  the  part  of  England  to  escape  subjection  to 
this  yoke. 


DATES  AND  NOTES.  175 

"  In  747  an  important  council  was  held  at  Cloveshoo, 
where  the  Bishops  and  clergy  were  specially  exhorted  to 
be  earnest  and  zealous,  to  visit  their  flocks  and  spend 
their  spare  time  in  reading.  They  were  to  aim  at  unifor- 
mity in  their  services,  to  teach  especially  truths  relating 
to  the  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  and  avoid  theatrical 
gesticulation  in  preaching.  The  Calendar  was  now  formed 
on  the  Roman  model,  and  festivals  added  in  honour  of 
St.  Gregory  and  St.  Augustine,  to  whom  w  e  owe  so  much. 
You  will  find  them  in  your  Calendar,  March  12  and  May 
26.    The  keeping  of  Sunday  was  also  strictly  enjoined. 

"  About  1 080  the  whole  service-book  began  to  be  called 
the  Breviarj',  and  in  10S6  the  celebrated  Sarum  Breviary 
was  drawn  up  by  Bishop  Osmund.  About  1390  the  Prymer 
was  printed  in  English.  This  contained  the  Litany,  Dirge, 
etc.,  and  marks  the  first  step  towards  a  service  in  the 
\ailgar  tongue,  'understanded  of  the  people.'  For  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years  before  the  Reformation,  or  pro- 
bably much  more,  the  Prjmer  was  the  authorized  book 
for  private  prayer  in  England. 

"  In  1534  English  Psalters  were  first  printed. 

"  In  1540  the  Great  Bible  was  ordered  to  be  set  up  in 
Churches  for  the  people  to  read  if  they  wished,  though 
the  Lessons  were  not  >  et  read  in  English  in  Church.  This 
was  begun  two  years  later  (1542). 

"In  1538  English  Epistles  and  Gospels  were  first 
printed. 

"  In  1544  the  Litany  of  the  Prymer  was  revised  by 
Cranmer  ;  so  this  beautiful  service  is  to  be  honoured  as 
the  first  given  to  us  in  our  Reformation.  That  was  said 
in  Enghsh,  and  the  rest  of  the  service  in  Latin  as  before. 

"In  1547,  the  first  year  of  Edward  VI.,  a  great  step 
was  made  by  putting  forth  the  First  Book  of  Homilies, 
which  should  give  the  people  religious  instruction  inde- 


176 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


pendently  of  the  priests.  The  Epistle  and  Gospel  were 
now  ordered  to  be  read  in  English. 

"  In  1547  Communion  in  both  kinds  was  also  restored. 
That  is,  the  laity  were  then  allowed  to  receive  both  ele- 
ments, instead  of  the  wafer  only.  This  was  a  most 
important  alteration.  The  word  '  Mass'  was  changed  to 
'  Communion,'  and  the  Communion  Service  was  given  in 
English,  1548." 

"  Did  the  priests  like  these  changes  ?" 

"  Some  of  them  did  ;  for  the  need  of  reform  had  been 
long  felt  by  many,  even  of  the  clergy.  Many  of  them 
however  preached  against  it,  and  persuaded  their  flocks 
that  the  object  of  Government  was  to  lay  a  tax  on  mar- 
riage, christening,  and  burial.  Preaching  was  therefore 
altogether  forbidden  for  a  time. 

"  In  1549,  on  Whitsunday,  the  first  English  Prayer- 
Book  was  used  ;  the  day  was  fixed  apparently  in  order  to 
dedicate  the  work  to  the  Holy  Spirit,  whose  influence,  we 
firmly  believe,  had  furthered  it. 

"  All  the  parts  or  elements  of  the  old  services  being  in 
some  measure  retained  and  incorporated  in  the  new,  it 
was  better  received  than  one  might  have  ex-pected,  and 
the  Act  of  Uniformity,  in  1549,  enjoined  upon  all  the 
clergy  to  use  the  reformed  Enghsh  Prayer-Book,  and  no 
other. 

"  There  were  plenty  of  persons  who  opposed  the  book, 
however,  wholly  or  in  part,  to  cause  perpetual  revisions, 
into  the  particulars  of  which  it  is  needless  to  enter.  You 
see  the  effects  of  some  by  the  dates  of  various  additions 
which  you  have  noted  down.  The  revisions  occurred  in 
155 1,  1552  (when  the  alterations  were  so  large  that  the 
book  was  put  forth  as  a  Secotid  Prayer-Book  to  supersede 
the  other),  1604,  and  1661.  The  Second  Book  of  Edward 
VI.  was  altered  (and  many  think,  spoiled)  in  deference  to 


NOTES  AND  DATES. 


177 


German  Reformers.  They  desired  to  do  away  with  much 
which  our  Church  wisely  retained.  Lutheranism  has 
lost  Episcopal  government*  and  other  essentials.  If 
you  attend  to  Church  matters,  by  such  means  as  Usten- 
ing  carefully  to  the  conversation  of  earnest  Churchmen, 
or  regularly  reading  such  a  paper  as  The  Guardian,  you 
will  learn  of  how  much  importance  the  changes  in  this 
Second  Book  are  held  to  be. 

"In  the  reign  of  Mary  (1553-1558)  the  Prayer-Book 
was  repealed,  and  Romanism  was  restored,  as  you  know, 
and  many  Reformers  burnt,  including  poor  Cranmer,  a 
man  of  conscience  but  weak  nerve,  who  first  abjured  his 
creed  for  fear  of  the  stake,  but  at  last  triumphed  over  his 
weakness  in  an  honourable  martyrdom.  Elizabeth  held 
a  middle  way  between  Rome  and  ultra-Protestantism. 
She  by  no  means  disliked  the  richer  forms  of  Catholi- 
cism, but  she  favoured  Reform  nevertheless,  and  dealt 
out  wonderful  blows  right  and  left,  now  at  Papists,  now 
at  Puritans,  with  a  hand  which,  though  a  woman's,  was 
remarkably  decided  and  strong.  In  her  long  reign  Reform 
was  placed  on  a  firm  basis.  In  it  (1571)  the  Thirty-nine 
Articles,  having  passed  through  certain  changes,  were 
brought  to  their  present  form. 

"  But  the  power  of  the  Papacy  now  dying  out  in  Eng- 
land, the  Puritans  began  to  rise  in  almost  as  troublesome 
opposition.  They  put  forth  a  Prayer-book  of  their  own 
(1578),  and  when  James  I.  ascended  the  throne  (1603) 
they  prepared  a  series  of  objections  to  the  Church,  to 
consider  which  he  assembled  a  conference  at  Hampton 
Court.  You  will  find  a  full  account  of  it  in  Short's  His- 
tory of  the  Church  of  Englatid,  chap.  xii.  Some  expla- 
natory changes  were  made  in  the  Prayer-Book ;  for 

•  The  Scandinavian  Churches  retain  Bishops,  but  the  Apostolical  Suc- 
cession has  been  preserved  only  in  Sweden.  In  Norway  and  Denmark  it 
is  supposed  to  have  been  lost.  The  Scandinavians  in  general  are  very 
indifferent  to  the  subject. 


178 


THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 


instance,  the  questions  and  answers  on  Sacraments  in 
the  Catechism,  by  Dr.  Overall.  Under  James  I.  our  own 
beloved  translation  of  the  Bible  was  made ;  one  of  the 
purest  pieces  of  English  extant. 

"With  Charles  I.  (1625-1649)  the  higher  Church  party 
had  the  lead  ;  i.e.  there  was  a  leaning,  not  to  Rome,  but 
to  primitive  Anglicanism,  and  this  was  regarded  by  the 
Puritans  as  a  leaning  to  Rome.  In  1637  a  Prayer-book 
was  prepared  for  use  in  Scotland,  in  which  the  few  differ- 
ences from  the  English  were  all  on  the  side  of  a  return 
to  the  First  Book  of  Edward  VI.,  which  (as  I  told  you) 
had  less  felt  the  influence  of  ultra-Protestantism  than 
the  second. 

"  The  enraged  and  now  powerful  Puritans  rose  up 
against  the  King  and  Church,  and,  as  you  well  know 
from  history,  put  to  death  both  that  mild  Monarch  and 
his  friend  and  adviser.  Archbishop  Laud.  I  remarked  to 
you  that  it  \\  as  he  \\  \\o  wTote  the  fine  prayer  for  the 
Parliament,  which  we  still  use ;  a  constant  example  of 
prayer  for  those  who  persecute  us.  The  Book  of  Com- 
mon Prayer  was  set  aside  by  Act  of  Parliament,  and  an 
assembly  of  divines  who  met  in  Henry  VII.'s  Chapel  at 
Westminster,  July  i,  1643.  put  forth  a  work  called  The 
Directory,  containing  the  outline  of  a  form  of  worship  to 
be  filled  up  according  to  the  minister's  pleasure.  It  also 
contains  a  Confession  of  Faith  and  two  Catechisms. 
There  was  a  party  in  that  assembly  called  Erastiatis,  from 
Thomas  Erastus,  a  German  professor,  whose  followers 
maintained  that  the  clergy  have  power  only  to  persuade, 
and  that  the  civil  government  alone  should  inflict  even  a 
religious  punishment.  I  mention  this  because  j-ou  will 
probably  often  hear  the  word  '  Erastians.'  It  is  now 
applied  to  those  who  would  subdue  the  authority  of  the 
Church  to  that  of  the  Stale. 


SAVOy  CONFERENCE. 


179 


"On  the  restoration  of  the  Stuarts  in  the  person  of 
Charles  II.  (1660),  the  Nonconformists  called  for  altera- 
tions in  the  service  and  discipline  of  the  Church.  The 
chief  mover  in  this  matter  was  the  eminent  Baxter,  the 
author  of  a  devotional  work  called  The  Saints'  Rest, 
which  was  very  popular  a  few  generations  ago.  He  even 
drew  up  a  long  prayer-book  of  his  own,  written  in  a  fort- 
night, to  show  that  his  party  did  not  object  to  set  forms 
of  prayer  as  such.  An  odd  proceeding,  certainly,  and  a 
very  clear  proof  of  the  advantage  of  remaining  in  the  old 
paths,  since  by  quitting  them  we  are  at  the  mercy  of 
innovators  who,  instead  of  leaving  us  liberty  as  they 
profess,  would  only  impose  on  us  their  own  words  for 
those  which  have  the  dignity  of  unnumbered  ages. 

"  A  conference  was  called  to  consider  the  complaints  ; 
the  divines  met  at  the  Bishop  of  London's  residence  in 
the  Palace  in  that  part  of  London  called  the  Savoy,  1661. 
Hence  the  meeting  is  called  the  Savoy  Conference.  Here 
the  last  revisal  of  the  Prayer-book  took  place.  Your  notes 
show  you  what  alterations  were  made  ;  and  in  1662  a  new 
Act  of  Uniformity  was  passed,  as  the  former  one  was  in 
some  measure  ill- adapted  for  the  actual  need. 

"  So  end  the  facts  of  the  Prayer-book's  history,  which 
I  have  thought  essential  for  our  purpose.  A  closer  study 
will  lead  to  additional  interest  and  reverence  for  this 
valuable  legacy  of  our  forefathers." 


CHAPTER  XII. 


IVhat  if  in  other  lines  than  ours 

They  •zttriie,  in  otJier  accents  speak  ? 
There  are  whom  'watchful  Love  empo^uers 

To  read  S7tch  riddles  ;  duteous  seek 
And  Hunt  shalt  quickly  find. 
The  Mother  best  may  tell  the  eager  babe's  deep  mind." 

Keble,  Carved  Angels. 

"  \X/"E  have  now,"  said  Mrs.  Askell  at  the  next  reading — 
"we  have  now  passed  shghtly  in  review  what  may 
be  called  the  solid  framework  of  the  Church's  fabric,  and 
we  may  turn  to  the  more  ornamental  parts  of  her  structure. 
We  have  glanced  at  wall,  tower,  and  column,  and  can  now 
admire  the  carved  wreaths  and  tracery  wth  all  their  deh- 
cate  beauty.  Yet  again  I  must  stop  to  repeat  that  we 
have  but  slightly,  and  very  slightly  indeed,  glanced  at  all 
this.  My  notes  must  not  be  mistaken  for  infallible  guides. 
They  are  always  insufficient,  and  may  probably  be  often 
incorrect.  My  powers  and  my  time  are  unequal  to  more 
than  this  :  I  have  but  tried  to  set  you  on  the  road  to 
deeper  and  better  learning  than  my  own.  My  two  main 
objects  are  to  give  you  a  wish  to  learn,  and  to  help  you 
to  the  right  spirit  in  which  to  receive  such  learning.  With 
these,  you  will  surely  advance  to  valuable  and  useful 
knowledge,  which  may  fomi  your  whole  mind  and  life. 

"  Having,  then,  laid  aside  Church  history,  we  must 
proceed  first  to  some  account  of  symbolism.    What  this 


SYMBOLIC  COLOURS. 


i8i 


is  I  have  already  explained.  It  is  the  system  of  signs  by 
which  to  the  eye  of  the  worshipper  are  presented  without 
words  the  deepest  truths  of  the  Christian  religion.  Dis- 
senters object  on  principle  to  symbolism  (indeed,  the 
chief  cause  of  the  narrowing  influence  of  dissent  is  that 
it  is  mainly  based  on  objections  to  something  else).  But 
our  kind  Mother  Church,  like  some  gracious  lady,  thinks 
of  the  little  children,  the  poor  and  ignorant,  whose  eyes 
and  thoughts  too  often  go  astray  from  the  words  of  prayer 
and  praise.  And  then  she  sets  before  them,  to  recall 
these  weak  and  wandering  thoughts,  emblems  of  all  holy 
things  expressed  in  each  line  of  her  structure,  in  each 
colour  of  her  ornaments." 
"  Emblems  in  colour  !" 

"  Yes,  Joan.  Have  you  not  noticed  how,  at  St.  Salva- 
dor's, we  have  violet  in  Lent,  white  at  Easter,  green  on 
ordinary  days,  and  red  on  festivals  of  martyrs  ?" 

"  You  mean  in  the  hangings  of  the  Altar.  Yes,  I  have 
noticed." 

"  I  should  have  explained  it  before,  but  that  I  knew  our 
time  would  come.    The  colours  have  this  significance : — 

"  White,  purity  and  joy.  It  is  used  at  Easter,  as  the 
most  joyous  of  all  seasons  ;  at  the  festivals  of  Christmas, 
the  Circumcision  and  Epiphany,  our  Lord's  childhood, 
in  sign  of  innocence ;  at  the  festivals  of  virgins,  and  of 
Saints  who  were  not  martyrs. 

"  Red  is  used  on  Whitsunday,  as  flame-colour,  typifying 
the  descent  of  the  Spirit ;  and  on  martyrs'  days,  to  denote 
the  blood  shed  for  Christ. 

"Green,  used  on  ordinary  Sundays,  and  on  ferias  or 
week  days,  denotes  plenty  and  charity,  as  the  colour  of 
Nature. 

"  Violet,  used  in  Advent,  Lent,  and  the  season  between 
Septuagesima  and  Lent,  signifies  sorrow. 


l82 


SYMBOLISM. 


"Black  is  used  on  Good  Friday  only,  to  denote  deep 
sorrow. 

"These  five  are  called  canonical  colours,  used  for 
vestments  and  Altar  draping. 

"  Blue  is  not  canonical ;  but  signifying  godliness,  divine 
contemplation,  or  the  sky-colour,  is  sometimes  used  for 
certain  adornments. 

"  Yellouj,  as  gold,  typifies  the  goodness  of  God,  and  is 
used  in  art  at  His  Holy  Name,  as  in  illuminated  writings. 
Dingy  yellow  means  deceit  and  crime,  and  is  used  in  art 
for  the  garments  of  Judas. 

"  Thus  the  Church  completes  her  rainbow  of  colour." 

"You  say  that  black  is  used  only  on  Good  Friday. 
Why  do  clergymen  wear  black  gowns?" 

"  The  black  gown  was  used  as  a  preaching  dress,  de- 
rived at  the  Reformation  from  Reformers  of  Geneva,  or 
earlier  from  the  black  Dominican  habit.  Our  clergy  wear 
it  as  an  academical  garment.  The  ancient  vestments  had 
all  a  meaning,  and  thus  come  under  the  head  of  symbols. 
Shall  I  name  them  ? 

"  In  vesting,  the  priest  put  on  first  the  Amice,  a  square 
of  linen,  which  he  laid  on  his  head  and  then  dropped  on 
to  his  shoulders,  wrapping  it  about  his  neck.  This  typi- 
fied the  veil  with  which  the  Jews  covered  Christ's  face, 
and  for  the  priest,  faith,  or  the  helmet  of  salvation. 

"  The  Alb  came  next ;  a  close  and  long  white  garment, 
typifying  that  wherewith  Herod  robed  Christ  in  mockery 
when  he  sent  Him  to  Pilate,  and,  for  the  priest,  purity 
and  innocence.  The  Surplice,  a  looser  vestment  (from 
super  pelliceum,  over  fur,  i.e.  over  a  fur  tippet,  worn  in 
cold  climes),  and  the  Rochet,  a  long  white  garment,  worn 
by  bishops,  ungirded,  have  the  same  significance. 

"The  Girdle,  meaning  the  scourge  with  which  Christ 
was  tormented,  typified,  for  the  priest,  chastity  of  life. 


VESTMENTS. 


183 


"  The  Stole,  the  long  black  band  worn  by  the  minister 
in  old-fashioned  churches,  took  the  canonical  colours  of 
green,  red,  violet,  &c.  It  is  a  long  narrow  band  of  silk, 
with  a  cross  or  other  symbol  embroidered  on  the  ends, 
and  signified  the  ropes  with  which  Christ  was  bound 
when  scourged,  and  for  the  minister,  the  yoke  of  patience, 
laid  upon  his  neck.  A  deacon  wears  it  only  over  the  left 
shoulder,  to  show  that  he  has  not  yet  taken  upon  him  the 
full  yoke  of  our  Lord. 

The  Maniple,  an  embroidered  piece  of  linen  or  silk, 
hung  upon  the  arm,  signified  spiritual  strength. 

"  The  Chasuble  (from  casula,  a  little  house)  is  a  large 
garment  without  sleeves,  and  is  the  essential  Eucharistic 
vestment,  often  called  the  vestment.  It  means  the  purple 
mantle  of  Christ,  and  for  the  priest,  charity.  It  has  often 
decorative  strips  of  embroidery,  called  orphreys,  and  is  of 
a  vesica*  shape,  with  a  hole  for  the  head. 

"  The  Cope  (from  cappa,  a  cape)  is  a  large  semi-circular 
cloak,  often  splendidly  embroidered.  It  has  no  symbol- 
ism. 

"  The  Dalmatic  is  a  short  vestment  with  short  sleeves, 
worn  by  deacons,  also  by  the  emperor  at  coronation, 
because  in  assuming  the  imperial  office  he  always  received 
sub-deacon's  orders.  Bishops  fully  attired  have  a  rochet 
or  alb,  cope  or  chasuble,  and  pastoral  staff,  i.e.  a  long 
ornamented  staff  with  a  crook  at  the  end,  to  denote  the 
shepherd-office  of  a  Bishop." 

"  But  do  our  Bishops  wear  all  these?" 

"No;  they  wear  the  rochet,  which  has  somehow  ac- 
quired the  immense  lawn  sleeves  now  worn,  and  a  gar- 
ment, named  a  chimere,  of  black  satin.  The  colour  black 
is  quite  unauthorized,  and  was  first  used  in  Elizabeth's 
reign.    In  the  earlier  Reformation  times,  under  Henry 

*  See  page  186. 


i84 


SYMBOLISM. 


VIII.  and  Edward  VI.,  the  Bishop  wore  over  his  rochet 
the  scarlet  habit  of  a  Doctor  of  Divinity. 

"  These  ecclesiastical  garments  were  the  ordinary  garb 
of  primitive  days,  and,  retained  by  the  priest,  remind  us 
of  the  venerable  age  of  our  Mother  Church,  besides  visibly 
setting  apart  the  ministers  when  exercising  their  holy 
offices. 

"  The  following  lines  express  the  deeper  reasons  of 
solemn  vestments : — 

'"PRIESTS  IN  WHITE. 
"'  When  they  enter  in  at  the  gates  of  the  inner  court,  they  sliall  be 
clot /led  ivith  linen  garments.' 
"  *  And  even  the  very  walls  of  the  dread  place, 
And  the  tall  windows  with  their  breathing  lights, 
Speak  to  the  adoring  heart,  and  say.  No  base 
Or  week-day  garb  may  him  beseem  who  writes 
God's  message  here  in  hearts  of  men. 
To  the  bright  nuptial  feast  of  joy  and  grace  invites : 
But  Angels,  waiting  on  our  awfiil  rites, 
Should  in  our  frail  and  mortal  angel  trace 
Some  hue  of  their  own  robes,  what  time  they  raise 
The  censer,  heaped  with  prayer,  before  the  throne ; 
And  innocents,  in  wonder  moved  to  gaze 
On  the  new  glory,  mantling  forms  well  known. 
Should  ask  and  learn  the  clue  to  Angels'  ways— 
The  vision  is  for  the  pure  heart  alone.'  • 

"  You  may  notice  on  some  Altar  cloths  two  strips  of  em- 
broidery not  unlike  the  ends  of  a  stole.  This  is  with  the 
idea  of  vesting  the  Altar  as  a  priest,  to  show  that  Christ, 
spiritually  present  upon  it,  is  our  Great  High  Priest. 

"  Of  the  elements  of  bread  and  wine  in  the  Holy  Com- 
munion and  of  water  in  baptism  I  cannot  speak  as  s>Tn- 
bols,  because  they  are  rather  mystic  gifts,  ordered  and 
enlivened  by  our  dear  Lord  Himself. 

"  We  now  come  to  pictorial  symbols,  and  will  first  take 

•  Keble,  from  the  Lyra  InwceniiutH. 


ORPHEUS. 


those  of  our  Lord.  The  earhest  found  in  the  Catacombs 
is  that  of  the  Good  Shepherd.  (St.  John  x.  14-16.) 
He  is  sometimes  represented  with  a  musical  pipe,  and 
this  may  have  been  to  lead  upwards  to  higher  devotion 
the  souls  which  had  worshipped  the  beautiful  Apollo, 
God  of  Music.  He  was  also  represented  as  Orpheus 
playing  on  his  lyre.  This  symbol  of  heathen  origin  may 
have  been  used  to  mislead  persecutors,  or  again  to  trans- 
form the  old  mythology  into  higher  life.  Let  us  read  the 
history  of  Orpheus  from  Cox's  Tales  of  Ancient  Greece'' 

They  did  so  ;  they  found  in  that  charming  book  how 
Eurydice  died  of  a  serpent's  bite  and  was  drawn  down  to 
Hades  ;  and  how  Orpheus  with  his  magic  lute  persuaded 
the  king  of  that  gloomy  place  to  let  her  follow  him  back 
to  earth  again  ;  but  how,  through  looking  back,  he  lost 
her ;  and  in  all  this,  but  in  the  sad  end,  they  found  a 
certain  allegory  which  might  have  been  woven  into  a 
parable  concerning  our  Lord  and  the  human  soul. 

Mrs.  Askell  continued  : — 

"  Perhaps  the  symbol  of  deepest  meaning  is  the  Lamb. 
It  shows  Christ  as  the  Paschal  Sacrifice,  and  denotes  also 
His  Divine  humility.  It  is  sometimes  simply  pourtrayed; 
sometimes  with  a  cross  or  banner ;  sometimes  standing 
on  a  hill  from  which  flow  four  rivers.  The  hill  is  the 
Church ;  the  rivers  are  the  four  Gospels,  the  streams  that 
water  our  paradise. 

"  With  a  cross-adorned  banner  and  a  glory  with  three 
rays,  the  Lamb  is  known  as  the  Agnus  Dei,  Lamb  of 
God. 

"  The  Lion  is  sometimes,  but  very  rarely,  the  emblem 
of  our  Lord,  'The  Lion  of  the  Tribe  of  Juda.'  (Rev.  v.  5.) 
The  Pelican  feeding  its  young  with  blood  from  its  own 
breast  (as  an  old  fable  related)  is  used  as  a  type  of  Christ's 
sacrifice  for  us. 


i86 


SYMBOLISM. 


"The  Fish  is  a  very  ancient  symbol  of  Christ,  and 
requires  some  explanation.  The  word  '  fish '  is,  in  Greek, 
Icktkus,  and  these  letters  ('ch'  standing  as  one  and  'th' 
as  another)  are  severally  initials  of  the  five  words,  Jesous 
Christos,  Theoti  Uios,  Soter :  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God,  the  Saviour.  St.  Augustine  is  among  the  earliest 
writers  who  name  the  fish  as  an  emblem  of  Christ.  It  is 
often  represented  by  a  long  oval,  Q,  supposed  to  represent 
a  flat-fish,  and  called  the  Vesica  Piscis,  fish-bladder,  from 
its  bladder-like  shape.  Remember  this ;  it  is  a  sign 
which  you  may  often  hear  of  if  you  pursue  your  studies 
in  ecclesiaetical  art. 

"  The  Vine  is  sometimes  used  as  a  symbol,  in  remem- 
brance of  Christ's  own  words.  (St.  John  xv.  i-8.) 

."  Two  Lights  on  the  Altar  signify  the  human  and  Divine 
natures  of  our  Lord. 

"  The  simplest  signs  to  represent  our  Lord  are  mono- 
grams or  initials,  used  in  floral  decorations  or  on  spaces 
too  small  to  admit  of  pictorial  symbols.* 

*  Here  Mrs.  Askell  produced  a  copy  of  the  Greek  Alphabet 
for  reference,  saying  that  it  was  often  of  use  in  such  studies  : 


A 

Alpha 

A 

N 

Nu 

N 

B 

Beta 

B 

Xi 

X 

r 

Gamma 

G 

0 

Omicron 

O  short 

A 

Delta 

D 

n 

Pi 

P 

E 

Epsilon 

E  short 

p 

Rho 

R 

z 

Zeta 

Z 

s 

Sigma 

S 

H 

Eta 

E  long 

T 

Tau 

T 

e 

Theta 

Th 

r 

Upsilon 

U 

I 

Iota 

I 

* 

Phi 

Ph 

K 

Kappa 

K 

X 

Chi 

Ch 

A 

Lambda 

L 

Psi 

Ps 

:m 

Mil 

M 

Omega 

O  long 

MONOGRAMS. 


187 


"  The  most  usual  are — 

I  H  2  Jesus,  a  Greek  monogram  ;  I  the  initial  letter  ; 
H  the  long  E,  and  the  Greek  S  ;  or  sometimes 
C,  the  old  form  of  S.  Thus  the  monogram  con- 
tains the  tirst  two  and  the  last  letters  of  the  name 
of  Jesous.    It  is  often  written  IHS. 

I  H  S  Jesus  Hoiniiutm  Salvator,  Jesus  the  Saviour 
of  men. 

XP  The  oldest  known  monogram,  found  in  relics 
of  the  second  century,  the  first  two  letters  of 
Christos. 

^         Is  composed  of  X,  the  Greek  ch,  and  I  the 

initial  of  lesoiis. 
^         Is  the  same  with  the  cross  added. 
^         Standing  for  X,  chi,  ch,  and  P,  rho,  r,  are  the 
^      first  letters  of  Christos. 

"This  monogram  is  called  the  'Labanmi,'  and  is  the 
emblem  said  to  have  been  seen  in  the  clouds  by  Con- 
stantine,  as  you  heard  in  our  second  Lesson. 

"  When  any  monogram  is  enclosed  in  a  circle,  it  typifies 
the  eternity  of  the  Being  symbolized. 

A  12  "  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  beginning  and  the  end- 
ing" (Rev.  i.  8),  are  the  first  and  last  letters  of  the 
Greek  Alphabet. 

"  Take  care,  by  the  way,  how  you  pronounce  that  last 
letter;  it  is  0-mega,  great  O,  the  first  syllable  quite 
distinct. 

"These  are  the  principal  emblems  of  Christ.  The 
Church,  as  you  know,  represents  our  Lord  on  earth.  We 
will  therefore  take  her  symbols  next. 

"Paradise  is  a  type  of  the  Church,  as  a  blessed  place 
in  the  world,  yet  not  0/  the  world,  and  containing  the 
Trees  of  Life  and  Knowledge. 


i8S 


SYMBOLISM. 


"  Eve  is  another  type,  formed  of  the  first  Adam  mystic- 
ally, as  the  Church  is  of  Christ  the  Second  Adam,  whose 
spouse  she  is. 

"  The  Ark  is  a  famous  type  :  as  Noah  was  saved  in 
the  Ark  by  water,  so  we  are  saved,  entering  into  the 
Church  through  baptism.  This  emblem,  or  that  of  a 
Ship,  which  has  the  Ark  meaning,  is  the  most  frequently 
used,  as  for  instance  in  the  very  fabric  of  every  church, 
the  body  of  which  is  always  called  the  Nave,  from  Navis, 
a  ship. 

"  The  Israelites  in  the  Wilderness  are  a  type,  a  people 
redeemed  from  bondage,  and  on  their  way  to  a  Land  of 
Peace. 

"  Jerusaletn  is  a  type  of  the  Church,  and  a  remarkably 
appropriate  one,  as  we  have  both  the  earthly  city,  beau- 
tiful, and  blessed  with  God's  Altar  and  special  care,  yet 
liable  to  shocks  and  troubles,  and  the  heavenly  Jerusalem 
spoken  of  in  the  Revelation.  These  represent  the  Church 
Militant  and  the  Church  Triumphant ;  those  who  still 
sti-uggle  here,  and  those  who  are  gone  before  to  rest. 

"  The  Moon  is  also  a  type  of  the  Church,  as  the  lumi- 
nary enlightening  the  world  in  the  night  time,  drawing  all 
her  glory  from  the  Sun,  ever  changing,  yet  the  same. 

"  The  Cross  is  a  symbol  so  universally  expressive  that 
it  can  scarcely  be  limited  in  signification.  It  means 
Christ ;  it  means  the  Church  as  His  Body  (as  we  see 
most  churches  built  in  the  shape  of  a  cross) ;  it  means  the 
Christian's  sufferings  ;  it  means  self-sacrifice  ;  it  means 
the  triumph  of  holiness.  For  all  these  meanings  we  must 
value  it,  and,  without  superstition,  can  scarcely  rate  it 
too  highly  as  a  symbol.  '  God  forbid  that  I  should  glory, 
save  in  the  Cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by  whom 
the  world  is  crucified  unto  me,  and  I  unto  the  world.' 
(Gal.  vi.  14.) 


THE  CROSS. 


t89 


"  There  are  varied  forms  of  this  most  sacred  symbol. 

The  Latin,  on  which  our  Lord  was  crucified : — 
^.        The  Greek : 

St.  Andrew's  (because  St.  Andrew  is  said  to 
X     have  been  crucified  on  one  of  this  shape. 

The  Tail  cross,  from  its  resemblance  to  the 
J     Greek  letter  Tau  (T),  also  called  St.  Anthony's 
Crutch,  or  the  Cross  Potent,  from  the  French 
word  potence,  a  gallows. 
"  The  Pope  bears  a  triple  cross  ;  i.e.  a  cross  with  three 
horizontal  bars,  one  above  the  other.    Cardinals  and 
Archbishops  in  the  Roman  Church  have  double  crosses. 
There  are  other  varieties,  less  necessary  to  remember. 
Sometimes  the  cross  is  crowned  ;  sometimes  floral  orna- 
ments end  each  limb ;  sometimes  words  expressive  of 
God's  attributes  are  written  on  it ;  but  these  additions 
are  easy  to  understand. 

"  The  Dove  represents  the  Holy  Ghost.  (St.  Matt.  iii. 
1 6.)  Sometimes  Seven  Doves  are  depicted  to  represent 
the  Seven  Spirits  of  God.  (Isa.  xi.  I,  2.) 

"  Seven  Lamps  have  the  same  meaning.  (Rev.  iv.  5.) 
"  The  Eagle  sometimes,  but  very  rarely,  symbolizes  the 
Holy  Spirit.    The  type  may  have  arisen  from  the  Greek 
mythology  and  Jove's  Eagle. 

"  Three  hicinan  figures,  or  two  and  the  dove,  or  one 
with  lamb  and  dove,  were  anciently  used  to  symbolize  the 
Holy  Trinity. 

"  The  Hand,  Lamb,  and  Dove  have  the  same  meaning, 
the  hand  symbolizing  God  the  Father's  creative  power 
and  boundless  gifts. 

"  The  Equilateral  Triangle  is  a  very  ancient  emblem 
of  the  Trinity,  and  is  the  one  now  chiefly  used.  It  is 
also  more  appropriate,  from  its  simplicity,  to  the  repre- 
sentation of  a  mystery  so  impossible  to  depict  with  any 


I90 


SYMBOLISM. 


definiteness.  The  triangle  is  sometimes  surrounded  by  a 
glory,  or  has  the  name  of  the  Ahnighty  written  upon  it. 
But  bearing  the  original  symbolism  in  mind,  the  varia- 
tions are  easily  comprehensible. 

"  The  Trefoil,  or  clover  leaf,  is  a  beautiful  and  natural 
emblem  of  the  Three  in  One.  It  is  said  that  St.  Patrick 
used  it  as  such  when  preaching  in  Ireland.  For  this 
reason  it  is  adopted  as  the  emblem  of  Ireland. 

"  Three  Circles  intertwined  have  also  the  same  signifi- 
cation, the  circle  being  an  emblem  of  eternal  existence. 

"  Twelve  Lambs  sj-mbolize  the  Apostles  ;  or  a  flock  of 
sheep,  Christians  in  general. 

"  Several  Fish  signify  Christians,  who  receive  spiritual 
life  in  the  water  of  baptism. 

"  The  Palm  is  the  sign  of  saintship.  (Rev.  vii.  9.) 

"  The  Glory  also  signifies  saintship  in  the  West,  but  in 
the  East  it  is  used  to  denote  power  merely  ;  and  so  is 
sometimes  given  even  to  Satan.  Rays  surrounding  only 
the  head  are  called  a  nimbus;  surrounding  the  whole 
form,  they  are  called  an  aureole.  A  Glory  proper  consists 
of  rays  surrounding  both  head  and  form. 

"  The  Dragon  is  the  emblem  of  sin  and  Satan. 

"  The  Crown  is  either  a  symbol  of  glorious  martyrdom 
or  a  sign  of  royalty.  Placed  over  the  cross,  it  signifies 
the  glory  of  suffering. 

"The  Lion  has  many  significations.  It  means  the 
Lord,  'The  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah;'  or  resurrection 
(as  explained  concerning  St.  Mark) ;  or  solitude  for 
ascetics,  as  St.  Jerome ;  or  fortitude,  as  in  the  case  of 
certain  martyrs.  Placed,  as  it  often  is,  over  church  doors, 
with  a  human  figure  in  its  mouth,  it  seems  to  refer  to  Ps. 
xxii.  20,  21  :  '  Save  me  from  the  lion's  mouth.' 

"  The  Hart,  or  Hind,  means  solitude  or  purity. 

"  The  Shell,  pilgrimage. 


EVANGELISTS. 


191 


"  The  Skidl,  penance. 

"  The  four  Evangelists  naturally  suggested  in  the  minds 
of  ancient  Bible-students  a  comparison  or  similarity  with 
the  four  mystic  beasts  spoken  of  in  Ezekiel  i.  5,  10,  and 
Rev.  iv.  6,  7.  The  symbolism  is  rather  forced,  but  has 
been  universally  received  as  follows  : — 

St.  Matthew  .  Angel  or  Winged  Man  .  Incarnation. 

St.  Luk€     .  .  Winged  Ox   Passion. 

St.  Mark    .  .  Winged  Lion   ....  Resurrection. 

St.  John     .  .  Eagle   Ascension. 

"  St.  Matthew  dwells  more  than  the  other  Evangelists 
on  the  incarnation  of  our  Lord  ;  St.  Luke  on  His  passion 
or  suffering,  implied  by  the  patient  ox  ;  St.  Mark's  sym- 
bohsm  is  less  clear,  but  his  sudden  commencement  with 
the  voice  of  John  crying  in  the  wilderness  is  compared  to 
the  lion's  roar,  and  the  lion  is  taken  as  the  type  of  resur- 
rection from  the  old  Eastern  fable  that  a  lion  licked  its 
dead  young  one  to  life  again.  St.  John  is  aptly  figured 
by  the  eagle,  which  it  is  said  looks  unblinded  on  the  sun. 
So  he  looked  closer  than  any  man  on  the  Sun  of  Love. 
Here  is  a  poem  of  the  twelfth  century,  written  in  Latin 
by  Adam  of  St.  Victor,  and  translated  by  Dr.  Neale. 
Though  rather  complicated  in  versification,  it  will  help  to 
fix  the  symbols  in  your  mind. 

'JUCUNDARE,  PLEBS  FIDELIS. 
"  'Children  of  a  Heavenly  Father, 
Faithful  people,  joy  the  rather 
That  the  Prophet's  lore  ye  gather. 

From  Ezekiel's  vision  draw. 
John  tliat  Prophet's  witness  sharing, 
In  the  Apocalypse  declaring, 
*'  This  I  write,  true  record  bearing, 

*'  Of  the  things  I  truly  saw." 


192 


SYMBOLISM. 


II. 

" '  Round  the  throne,  'midst  angel  natures. 
Stand  four  holy,  living  creatures. 
Whose  diversity  of  features 

Maketh  good  the  Seer's  plan  : 
This  an  eagle's  visage  knoweth ; 
That  a  lion's  image  showeth  : 
Scripture  on  the  rest  bestoweth 
The  twin  forms  of  Ox  and  Man. 
III. 

"  'These  are  they,  the  symbols  mystic 
Of  the  forms  Evangelistic, 
Who  the  Church,  with  streams  majestic, 

Irrigate  from  sea  to  sea  : 
Matthew  first,  and  Mark  the  second  ; 
Luke  with  these  is  rightly  reckoned ; 
And  the  loved  Apostle,  beckoned 

From  his  nets  and  Zebedee. 

IV. 

**  *  Matthew's  form  the  man  supplieth, 
For  that  thus  he  testifieth 
Of  the  Lord,  that  none  denieth 

Him  to  spring  from  man  He  made  : 
Luke's  the  ox,  in  form  propitial. 
As  a  creature  sacrificial. 
For  that  he  the  rites  judicial 

Of  Mosaic  law  displayed. 

"  '  Mark,  the  wilds  as  lion  shaketh. 
And  the  desert  hearing  quaketh, 
Preparation  while  he  maketh 

That  the  heart  with  God  be  right. 
John,  love's  double  wing  devising. 
Earth  on  eagle  plumes  despising. 
To  his  God  and  Lord  uprising, 

Soars  away  in  purer  light 

VI. 

•  Symbols  quadriform  uniting. 
They  of  Christ  are  thus  inditing  ; 
Quadriform  His  acts,  which  writing 

They  produce  before  our  eyes. 
Man — whose  birth  man's  law  obeyeth ; 
Ox — whom  victim's  passion  slayeth ; 
Lion — when  on  death  he  preyeLh : 
Eagle— s'oaring  to  the  skies. 


APOSTLES. 


193 


"  '  These  the  creature  forms  ethereal 
Round  the  majesty  imperial 
Seen  by  prophets  :  but  material 

Difference  'twixt  the  visions  springf;. 
Wheels  are  rolling — wings  are  flying — 
Scripture  lore  this  signifying  ; 
Step  with  step,  as  wheels,  complying. 
Contemplation  by  the  wings. 

"'Paradise  is  satiated, 

J'lossoms,  thrives,  is  fsecundated, 
With  the  waters  irrigated 

From  these  rills  that  aye  proceed  : 
Christ  the  fountain,  they  the  river, 
Christ  the  source,  and  they  the  giver 
Of  the  streams  that  they  deliver 
To  supply  His  people's  need. 

"  '  In  these  streams  .)ur  souls  bedewing. 

That  more  fully  wc  ensuing 

Thirst  of  goodness  and  renewing. 
Thirst  more  fully  may  nllay  : 

We  their  holy  doctrine  follow, 

From  the  gulf  that  gapes  to  swallow, 

And  from  pleasures  vain  and  hollow- 
To  the  joys  of  heavenly  day.' 

"These  symbols  sometimes  accompany  the  figures  of  the 
Evangelists,  sometimes  stand  alone  representing  them." 

"  What  does  EvangeHst  mean?"  asked  Joan. 

"  A  bringer  of  good  news — Eu,  happy  or  blessed  ; 
angelio7i,  a  message.  The  twelve  Apostles  are  also  dis- 
tinguished in  art  by  symbols  which  they  hold.  The 
following  is  a  list  of  them : — 

Reason. 
St.  Matt.  xvi.  19. 

St.  James  receives 
these  emblems  from  the 
countless  pilgrimages 
made  to  his  noted  shrine 
of  Compostella  in  Spain. 

O 


Apostle.  Emdij 
St.  .Simon  Peter  Keys 


.  ,       (    Pilgrim's  staff, 

ht.  James  the     I     .        ,  ,, 
■'  \  scrip,  and  scallop-- 

(shell 


194 


SYMBOLISM. 


St.  John  ♦ 

St.  Andrew 
St.  Philip 
St.  Bartholomew 
St.  Matthew 
St.  Thomas 


A  cup  -ndth  a 
serpent  issuing  1 
from  it. 


Reason. 

It  is  said  that  St.  John 

was   once  miraculously 

delivered  from  death  by 

a  poisoned  chalice. 

_  (    Instrument  of  martyr- 

Transverse  cross     ,  ' 
\aom. 

A  small  cross        The  same. 
A    knife  and 


human  skin. 

A  purse 

A  builder's  rule 


j  He  was  flayed  alive. 

St.  Matt.  ix.  9. 
An  Allegory,  t 
I     Instrument  of  martyr- 


St.  James  the  Less  Fuller's  club 

St.Jude(St.  Lukev 

vi.  16) 
Thaddaeus    (St.  I 

»»  1  •••    D>  riialberd 

Mark  m.  18)  or 

Lebbseus    (St.  I 

Matt.  X.  3)  •' 
St.SimonZelotesj:\ 

St.  Lukevi.  15), 

or  The  Canaan- 1 A  saw 

ite  (St.  Mark 

iii.  18)  / 
St.  Matthias  (Acts  1 

i.  26)  J 


Instrument  of 


martyr- 


An  axe  or  spear     The  same. 


*  It  is  as  Evangelist  that  St.  John  has  the  eagle. 

t  The  beautiful  story  goes  that  Christ  in  a  vision  commanded  St.  Thomas 
to  go  to  Gondoforus,  King  of  the  Indies,  who  desired  a  splendid  p.-ilace, 
which  St.  Thomas  should  offer  to  build.  This  he  did,  but  instead  of  build- 
ing an  earthly  palace,  he  gave  the  money  to  the  poor.  Gondoforus  in  anger 
cast  Sl  Thomas  into  prison,  but  his  own  dead  brother  on  this  suddenly 
appeared  to  tell  him  that  in  P.-iradise  he  had  «»en  a  mar\'eIIoiis  palace  of  un- 


THE  CALENDAR. 


195 


"Judas  Iscariot  is  known  by  a  bag  (St.  John  xii.  6), 

by  his  ill  expression,  and  his  dingy  yellow  dress." 

"  Why  is  one  St.  James  called  the  Great  and  the  other 
the  Less  ?" 

"It  is  not  easy  to  decide,  but  the  distinction  is  tra- 
ditional. Perhaps  because  St.  James  the  Great  was  older 
than  the  other,  or  because  he  was  associated  with  Peter 
and  John  in  our  Lord's  supreme  moments,  as  in  the 
raising  of  Jairus's  daughter  (St.  Mark  v.  37)  ;  Transfigu- 
ration (St.  Luke  ix.  28) ;  the  Agony  (St.  Matt.  xxvi.  37). 

"  St.  James  the  Less  was  the  Bishop  of  Jerusalem  of 
whom  you  heard  in  chap,  ii.,  and  is  called  in  Gal.  i.  19 
'  the  Lord's  brother.' 

"Let  us  now  turn  to  our  Calendar,  and  trace  some 
account  of  the  holy  persons  and  events  commemorated 
there.* 

THE  CALENDAR. 

"  t  The  Circumcision  of  our  Lord  (Jan.  i).  The  spiritual 
significance  of  this  event  is  touchingly  given  by  Keble  :— 

** '  The  year  begins  with  Thee, 
And  thou  begin'st  with  woe, 
To  let  the  world  of  sinners  see 
That  blood  for  sin  must  flow.* 

"t  The  Epiphany,  or  manifestation  of  Christ  to  the 
Gentiles  (Jan.  6),  otherwise  called  Twelfth  Day,  occurring 
..welve  days  after  Christmas,  has  for  its  special  emblem  a 
^ve-pointed  star,  in  memorial  of  the  star  which  led  the 
Wise  Men  to  our  Lord. 

***The  guiding  Star  above  is  bright, 
Within  them  shines  a  clearer  light, 

earthly  beauty  built  for  the  king  by  the  money  given  in  charity.  St.  Thomas 
was  released,  and  the  king  became  a  Christian. 

t  Zelotes — i.e.  the  Zealot,  one  of  a  Jewish  sect  ;  Canaanite  is  the  Hebrew 
term  for  the  samo  thing. 

*  The  holy  days  for  which  special  Collects  arc  appoimed  are  marked  +. 


196 


SYMBOLISM. 


Which  leads  them  on  with  power  benign 
To  seek  the  Giver  of  the  sign.'  • 

Lncian  (Jan.  8),  Presbyter  and  Martyr,  was  said 
to  be  a  disciple  of  St.  Peter,  and  suffered  martyrdom  in 
France. 

Hilary  (Jan.  13)  has  for  an  emblem  three  books, 
which  he  wrote  against  the  Arians,  or  is  represented 
treading  on  serpents,  typifying  heresy.  He  was  a  Bishop 
of  Poictiers  in  the  fourth  century.  The  Te  Deuvi  is  by 
some  attributed  to  him.  The  first  Law  Term  is  named 
from  him,  Hilary  Term. 

"St.  Prisca  (Jan.  18),  Virgin  and  Martyr  was  a  Roman 
girl  who  suffered  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  in  the  third  cen- 
tury. We  cannot  now  trace  the  true  meaning  underlying 
the  legend,  that  the  lions  which  were  brought  forth  to  slay 
her  knelt  at  her  feet,  and  that  an  eagle  watched  o\'er  her 
dead  body.  She  is  represented  with  a  palm  or  a  sword 
in  her  hand,  a  lion  crouching  at  her  feet,  and  an  eagle 
hovering  above  her. 

"St.  Fabian  (Jan.  20),  Bishop  of  Rome,  beheaded 
under  the  Emperor  Decius,  a.d.  250.  He  is  represented 
with  the  triple  crown  of  the  Popes,  a  sword  and  a  dove 
hovering  above  him,  in  accordance  with  the  legend  told 
of  him  and  of  others  that  the  choice  to  the  Papacy  was 
fixed  upon  him  in  consequence  of  a  dove  alighting  upon 
him.  Such  legends  appear  to  be  symbolical  of  the  work 
of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

"St.  Agnes  (Jan.  21),  Virgin  and  Martyr,  was  a  noble 
Roman  girl,  beheaded  a.d.  304.  Her  memory-  was  much 
cherished  by  the  early  Church.  Her  name  signifies,  in 
Latin,  a  lamb;  in  Greek,  pure.  She  is  represented  with 
a  lamb  by  her  side.  Certain  sacred  lambs  kept  in  Rome, 
and  yearly  blessed  by  the  Pope,  are  called  St.  Agnes' 

*  III  urn  58-  Hymns  Ancient  atid  Mod.  r». 


THE  CALENDAR. 


197 


lambs.  From  their  wool  are  made  the  palls  (Latin, 
pallium,  a  cloak)  sent  by  the  Pope  to  Archbishops  of  the 
Roman  Church  as  a  sign  of  installation.  These  are  now 
merely  long  scarves.  Such  a  pall  is  to  be  seen  in  the  coat 
of  arms  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury. 

"  St.  Vincent  (Jan.  22),  Deacon  and  Martyr,  has  for  a 
symbol  the  iron  bars  on  which  he  was  roasted;  also  a 
raven,  to  signify  that  his  body  was  cast  to  the  fowls  of  the 
air.  He  was  a  native  of  Saragossa  in  Spain,  and  died  A.D. 
304.  Certain  of  his  relics  were  carried  by  Christians 
persecuted  by  the  Moors,  to  the  promontory  hence  called 
Cape  St.  Vincent. 

"  t  The  Conversion  of  St.  Paul  (Jan.  25)  is  commemo- 
rated on  account  of  its  vast  importance  to  Christendom. 
St.  Paul  bears  in  art  a  sword,  the  instrument  of  his 
martyrdom. 

"  Kino-  Charleys  Martyrdom  (Jan.  30),  a  day  in  memory 
of  Charles  I.'s  illegal  execution,  was  established  by 
Charles  II.,  but  abolished  by  Royal  Proclamation  A.D. 
1859. 

"  t  Tlie  Purification  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  (Feb.  2)  also 
records  our  Lord's  presentation  in  the  Temple.  (St.  Luke 
ii.  22-39.)  It  was  formerly  called  Candlemas  Day,  on 
account  of  the  many  lights  used  in  the  churches  to  illus- 
trate Simeon's  words  :  'A  light  to  lighten  the  Gentiles.' 

"St.  BlasiHs  or  Blaise  (Feb.  3),  Bishop  and  Titular 
Saint  of  Sebaste  (now  Szivas),  was  martyred  A.D.  316, 
by  being  beheaded,  after  having  his  flesh  torn  by  an  iron 
wool-comb.  That  is  his  emblem.  He  is  on  this  account 
the  Patron  Saint  of  wool-combers,  and  guilds  were 
dedicated  to  him  in  Norfolk  and  Yorkshire. 

''St.  Agatha  (Feb.  5),  Virgin  and  Martyr,  a  Sicilian 
maiden,  whose  breasts  were  cruelly  lacerated  by  her 
persecutors     For  this  cause  she  bears,  with  the  palm 


SYMBOLISM. 


the  pincers,  and  sometimes  a  female  breast  laid  in  a  dish. 
Died  A.u.  251.  She  is  also  represented  with  a  clasped 
book. 

"St.  Valentine  (Feb.  14),  Priest  and  Martyr.  He  lived 
at  Rome,  and  was  martyred  A.]).  271,  under  Claudius  II. 
The  exchange  of  love-letters  on  that  day  comes  from  an 
old  heathen  custom  which  the  Christians  attempted  in 
vain  to  raise  to  higher  purposes. 

"  t  St.  Matthias  (Feb.  24),  Apostle  and  Martyr.  {See  p. 
1 94-) 

"St.  David  (March  i),  Archbishop  and  Martyr,  Patron 
Saint  of  Wales,  lived  in  the  sixth  century,  and  was  said 
to  be  uncle  to  King  Arthur.  He  was  a  devout  and  learned 
man,  and  contended  valiantly  against  the  Pelagian  heresy. 
He  lies  in  the  Cathedral  of  St.  David.  His  national 
emblem  is  a  leek,  from  a  story  of  modern  times. 

"St.  Chad  (March  2),  Bishop  and  Martyr,  was  trained 
under  St.  Aidan,  at  Lindisfarne,  and  also  studied  in 
Ireland  ;  he  was  then  sent  to  Yorkshire,  where  he  was 
consecrated  to  the  See  of  York  ;  but  ^Vilfred  having  also, 
by  a  misunderstanding,  been  consecrated  to  that  see, 
St.  Chad  resigned  in  his  favour.  He  was  appointed 
Bishop  of  Lichfield  a.d.  670,  and  died  there  of  the  plague 
A.D.  673. 

"  St.  Pcrpctua  (March  7),  a  young  African  lady,  suffered 
with  St.  Felicitas,  under  Severus,  A.D.  203.  She  was  a 
wife  and  the  mother  of  an  infant  child.  Her  sufferings  were 
great ;  she  was  first  tossed  by  a  wild  cow,  and  then  slowly 
butchered.  {See  Milman's  History  of  Christianity, 
vol.  ii.) 

St  Gregory  (March  12),  Bishop  and  Confessor.  To 
him  we  owe  the  sending  of  St.  Augustine,  bearing  the 
Gospel  to  England.  He  held  the  Papal  See  from  590  to 
604,  but  vigorously  opposed  the  title  of  Universal  Bishop. 


THE  CALENDAR. 


199 


He  is  represented  as  Pope  with  a  dove  on  his  shoulder, 
signifying  that  the  Holy  Spirit  inspired  his  acts.    He  is 
one  of  the  four  great  Latin  doctors  of  the  Church, 
SS.  Jerome,  Ambrose,  Augustine,  and  Gregory." 
"Why  is  he  called  'confessor'?" 

"To  distinguish  him  from  the  martyrs  in  act.  He  was 
one  of  the  martyrs  in  will  alone,  like  St.  John. 

^'Edward  (March  18),  King  and  Martyr,  has  a  cup  and 
dagger  ;  he  was  stabbed  in  the  back  while  drinking  at 
Corfe  Castle,  by  command  of  his  wicked  step-mother, 
Elfrida,  A.D.  970,  when  only  fifteen  years  of  age.  He  has 
no  true  personal  claim  to  be  regarded  as  a  Saint,  only  a 
pious  and  amiable  person. 

'■'■St.  Benedict  (March  21),  of  whom  we  read  in  our 
history  of  monasticism,  was  born  480,  and  died  542.  His 
symbols  are  an  aspergillum  or  holy  water  sprinkler,  to 
denote  purity  of  life,  and  a  cup  with  a  serpent,  or  a  loaf, 
in  remembrance  of  two  attempts  to  poison  him. 

"t  The  Atmiuiciation  of  the  Virgin  (March  25)  is  re- 
presented in  full ;  an  angel  approaches  the  Blessed  Virgin ; 
a  lily  is  near  her,  or  in  her  hand.    (St.  Luke  i.  26-38.) 

"  St  Richard  (April  3),  Bishop  and  Confessor,  has  a 
chalice  on  the  ground  before  him,  from  the  legend  that 
once  when  he  fell  with  the  chalice  in  his  hand,  the  wine 
was  preserved  from  being  spilled.  He  was  made  Bishop 
of  Chichester,  A.D.  1245,  and  was  a  very  pious  and  learned 
man. 

'■'St.  Ambrose  (April  4),  Bishop,  Confessor,  and  Doctor 
of  the  Church,  has  a  triple  scourge,  in  memory  of  his 
excommunicating  the  Emperor  Theodosius.  He  has  also 
a  hive  of  bees,  from  a  legend  that  when  he  was  an  infant 
a  swarm  once  settled  on  his  lips,  but  did  not  hurt  him  ; 
a  proof  of  his  future  eloquence.  He  was  Bishop  of  Milan 
between  a.d.  374  and  397.    The  Te  Dtiiin  is  (incorrectliti 


SYMBOLISM. 


attributed  to  him,  and  he  made  great  improvements  in 
Church  music. 

"  St.  Alphege  (April  19),  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  A.D. 
954-1012,  has  a  battle-axe,  with  which  his  life  was  merci- 
fully ended  after  his  Danish  persecutors  had  stoned  him 
with  the  huge  bones  left  from  their  rude  feast. 

".S"/.  George  of  Cappadocia  (April  23),  Martyr  and 
Patron  Saint  of  England,  has  a  dragon,  red-cross  shield, 
and  spear,  in  memory  of  the  noted  legend  which  relates 
how  he  slew  a  dragon  that  was  ravaging  a  district  of 
Libya,  probably  emblematic  of  the  victory  over  Satan. 
His  story  is  full  of  allegory,  and  has  everywhere  been 
popular.  He  was  a  brave  soldier  of  the  third  century, 
and  a  legend  relates  that  he  in  person  aided  Robert  Duke 
of  Normandy,  son  of  William  the  Conqueror,  in  the  siege 
of  Antioch,  and  Richard  I.  placed  the  Crusading  Army 
under  his  protection,  whence  the  battle  cry,  '  St.  George 
for  England.'  Before  this,  Edward  the  Confessor  was  the 
Patron  Saint  of  England. 

"t^/.  Mark  (April  25),  Evangelist.  {Sec  p.  191.) 

"t^'S".  Philip  and  James  (May  i).  Apostles  and 
Martyrs.  {See  p.  194.) 

"  The  hivoition  of  the  Cross  (May  3),  refers  to  the 
supposed  discovery  of  the  true  Cross  by  St.  Helena,  a 
British  lady,  mother  of  the  Emperor  Constantine. 

"  St.  John  Anlc  Portam  Latinam  (May  6).  {See  Dec.  27.) 

"St.  Dunsiaii  (May  19),  Archbishop.  {See  Chap,  iv.) 
His  symbols  are  a  harp  and  furnace-tongs,  as  he  was  an 
expert  musician  and  metal  worker. 

"St.  Augustine,  or  Austin  (May  26),  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  brought  over  the  Good  News  to  our  island, 
A.D.  597. 

"  The  Venerable  Bede  (May  27),  Priest,  is  well  worthy 
of  our  reverence.  {Sec  Chap,  iv.)  The  epithet  'Venerable ' 


20t 


was  won  by  his  learning  and  piety  ;  but  the  legend  says 
that  his  scholar,  in  writing  his  epitaph,  could  get  no 
farther  than  this — 

"  '  Hac  sunt  in  fossa 
Bedae   .    .    .  ossa." 

('  Here  are  in  the  grave  the  bones  of  Bede.')  And  in  the 
night  an  angel  completed  the  second  line  by  the  word 
venerabilis J  thus 

*'  *  Beda;  venerabilis  ossa.' 

('  The  bones  of  the  Venerable  Bede.') 

"  Jf/.  NiLLiiiu'de  (June  i),  Priest  and  Martyr,  was  a  pupil 
of  St.  Peter,  beaten  to  death  with  a  spiked  club  in  the 
reign  of  Domitian.    The  spiked  club  is  his  emblem. 

''St.  Boniface  (June  5),  Bishop  and  Martyr,  was  an 
English  priest,  first  named  Winfrid,  who  went  as  a 
missionary  to  Germany,  and  converting  many  there,  was 
called  the  Apostle  of  Germany.  He  was  a  friend  of  Bede, 
and  was  slain  by  the  barbarians  near  Utrecht,  A.D.  755. 
His  emblem  is  a  book  pierced  by  a  sword  or  a  scourge. 
He  is  also  represented  hewing  down  an  oak  sacred  to 
Jupiter  to  build  a  Christian  church. 

''\St.  Barnabas  (June  11),  though  not  of  the  twelve, 
had  gifts  almost  equal  to  theirs.  He  was  the  first  to 
believe  in  St.  Paul's  conversion  (Acts  ix.  27),  and  worked 
with  him  (Acts  xiii.  xi  v.  xv.)  till  a  misunderstanding  divided 
them,  and  Barnabas  took  his  sister's  son,  St.  Mark,  for  his 
companion.  He  must  have  had  a  noble  presence,  for  the 
people  of  Lystra  took  him  for  Jupiter.  (Acts  xiv.  12.)  He 
has  for  symbol  the  Gospel  of  St.  Matthew,  because  it  is 
said  (doubtless,  truly,  in  a  spiritual  sense  at  least)  that  he 
healed  many  sick  with  it. 

"  Si.  Alban  (June  17),  Martyr.  {Sec  Chap,  iv.)  He  bears 
a  cross  with  a  staff  or  palm. 


202 


SYMBOLISM. 


"  Translaiion  of  King  Edward  (June  20),  celebrates  the 
removal  of  the  body  of  the  king  murdered  at  Corfe  Castle 
from  a  temporary  grave  to  a  splendid  one  at  Shaftesbury 
Minister. 

"+6'/.  Johti  Baptist  (June  24,  Midsummer  Day)  has  a 
hairy  garment  and  a  cross,  and  often  a  lamb.  (St.  John 
i.  29.) 

"  +67.  Peter  (June  29),  Apostle  and  Martyr.  {See  p.  193.) 

"\The  Visitation  of  the  Virgin  Mary  (July  2)  is 
described  in  St.  Luke  i.  39-56.  This  feast  was  instituted 
at  the  close  of  the  14th  century. 

"  Translation  of  St.  Martin  (July  4).  {See  Nov.  1 1.) 

"St.  Swithiin  (July  15),  Bishop  of  Winchester  852-853, 
derives  his  chief  importance  to  us  from  his  determination 
after  death  to  be  buried  with  the  poor  in  the  churchyard, 
not  in  the  church.  The  legend  says  that  his  monks,  \vishing 
to  remove  his  body,  were  for  thirty-nine  successive  days 
prevented  by  heavy  rains,  and  thus  we  say  that  if  it  rains 
on  St.  Swithun's  day  it  will  rain  daily  for  six  weeks.  As  his 
grave  is  now  shown  in  the  cathedral,  we  find  that  the  Saint 
yielded  at  last  to  the  desires  of  his  monks. 

"St.  Margaret  (July  22),  Virgin  and  MartjT,  was  a 
lady  of  Antioch,  beheaded  as  a  Christian  (a.D.  278). 
Her  emblem  is  a  cross  and  dragon,  from  a  legend  that 
the  devil  appeared  to  her  in  the  shape  of  a  dragon,  but 
that  she  put  him  to  flight  with  the  cross.  Or  otherwise 
that  the  dragon  swallowed  her,  but  immediately  burst 
and  set  her  free.    This  is  obviously  allegorical. 

"St.  Mary  Magdalene  (July  22)  is  represented  as  an 
ascetic  with  flowing  hair.  (St.  John  xii.  3.)  The  Western 
Church  identifies  her  with  Mary  of  Bethany  ;  but  as  her 
identity  is  uncertain,  the  feast  was  omitted  in  the  second 
Prayer  Book  of  Edward  VI. 

"  +  Si  James  the  Great  (July  25),  Aposde  {see  pp.  193 


THE  CALENDAR. 


203 


and  195),  has  a  sword  (Acts  xii.  I,  2)  or  a  staff.  He  is 
the  noted  St.  lago  of  Spain. 

"St.  Anne  (July  26),  the  mother  of  the  Blessed  Virgin, 
is  represented  as  a  venerable  woman,  teaching  her  daugh- 
ter to  read  the  Scriptures. 

"Lammas  Z^rt/ (August  i),  from  Loaf-mass,  because  it 
was  a  Saxon  custom  to  offer  first-fruits  of  corn  on  this 
day,  is  known  in  the  Roman  Church  as  'St.  Peter  in 
Vinculis'  (St.  Peter  in  the  fetters)  in  commemoration  of 
St.  Peter's  imprisonment.  (Acts  xii.  3-1 1.)  The  Empress 
Eudoxia,  wife  of  Theodosius,  instituted  this  feast  in  place 
of  one  in  honour  of  Augustus  Ctesar. 

"  The  Transfiguration  (August  6)  (St.  Mark  \\.  2-  10) 
has  been  honoured  in  the  East  since  A.D.  700. 

"  The  Name  of  Jesus  is  specially  honoured  on  August 
7  ;  but  why  and  when  the  feast  originated  seems  un- 
certain. It  sets  forth  the  sanctity  of  that  Name  'at  which 
every  knee  shall  bow.'  It  does  not  occur  in  the  Roman 
breviary. 

"St.  Lawrence  (August  10),  a  Spaniard  by  birth,  was 
deacon  to  Pope  Sixtus  about  A.D.  259,  and  when  that 
Bishop  was  taken  to  martyrdom,  Lawrence  followed  him, 
crying,  '  O  Father,  where  do  you  go  without  your  son  ? 
You  never  were  wont  to  offer  sacrifice  without  me.'  His 
own  death  soon  followed ;  he  was  broiled  alive  on  a  grid- 
iron, which  is  his  emblem.  The  Palace  of  the  Escurial 
at  Madrid  is  built  in  that  shape  in  his  honour. 

"  t  St.  Bartliolomeuj  (August  24),  Apostle  and  Martyr. 
{Sec  p.  194.) 

"St.  Augustine,  of  Hippo  (August  28),  Bishop,  Con- 
fessor, and  Doctor,  was  a  memorable  instance  of  conver- 
sion in  answer  to  prayer,  that,  namely,  of  his  mother 
Monica.  He  was  the  most  voluminous  writer  of  all  the 
Fathers,  his  last  work  being  his  Confessions,  which  all 


204 


SYMBOLISM. 


people  would  do  well  to  possess  and  read.  He  died  a.d. 
430,  aged  seventy-seven.  .  His  emblem  (but  not  con- 
stantly used)  is  a  heart,  sometimes  flaming  as  with  zeal, 
sometimes  pierced  with  arrows  for  remorse. 

"  The  Beheading-  of  St.  John  Baptist  (August  29)  is 
recorded  in  St.  Matthew  xiv.  3-12.  The  Saint's  skull  is 
said  to  be  preserved  in  three  different  churches  on  the 
Continent,  a  part  of  that  or  of  some  skull  taken  for  his 
being  in  fact  at  each. 

"St.  Giles,  or  Egidiits  (Sept.  i),  Confessor,  was  bom  at 
Athens,  but  came  to  France  A.D.  715,  and  became  Abbot 
of  Nismes.  He  was  noted  for  charity.  His  emblem  is 
a  hind,  from  the  legend  that  the  Gothic  King,  following 
a  hind  in  the  chase,  was  led  by  it  to  the  cave  of  the 
hermit  Giles,  who  lived  on  the  milk  of  the  creature. 
The  King  built  a  monastery  there,  and  made  Giles  Abbot 
of  it.  From  his  refusing  to  be  healed  of  lameness  he  is 
the  Patron  Saint  of  cripples,  and  churches  dedicated  to 
him  are  generally  in  suburbs  of  towns,  that  the  lame  may 
resort  there  on  their  approach.  Witness  St  Giles's, 
Cripplegate. 

"St.  Eumirchus  (Sept.  7)  was  sent  to  Orleans  to  redeem 
slaves  at  the  time  when  the  Christians  there  were  about 
to  choose  a  Bishop,  and  their  choice  was  led  to  him  by  a 
dove  twice  alighting  on  his  head.  The  dove  is  therefore 
his  emblem.  He  lived  in  the  fourth  century.  {Sec  p.  196) 
[St.  Fabian]. 

The  Nativity  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary  is  honoured 
on  Sept.  8,  a  chorus  of  Angels  having  been  said  to  pro- 
claim the  day. 

"Holy  Cross  Day  (Sept.  14)  has  the  following  story: 
Cosroes,  King  of  Persia,  having  plundered  Jerusalem,  and 
carried  thence  part  of  the  true  Cross  left  there  by  the 
Empress  Helena,  the  Emperor  Heraclius  gave  battle. 


205 


defeated  him,  and  came  back  in  triumph  with  the  wood  ; 
but  found  the  city  gates  barred,  and  heard  a  voice  saying 
that  the  King  of  kings  had  entered  there,  meek  and  lowly, 
and  riding  upon  an  ass.  Upon  which  he  too  went  in 
barefoot,  carrying  the  sacred  wood.  This  festival  also 
commemorates  the  appearance  of  the  Labarum  to  Con- 
stantine. 

St.  Lambert  (Sept.  17),  Bishop  and  Martyr,  was  mur- 
dered for  reproving  the  wickedness  of  King  Pepin  I.  He 
was  Bishop  of  Maestricht.  It  was  Robert,  Bishop  of 
Leeds,  who  instituted  the  feast,  A.u.  1240.  His  emblem 
is  a  javelin,  the  instrument  of  his  death. 

"ti"/.  Matthew  (Sept.  21),  Apostle  and  Martyr.  {See 
p.  194.) 

"  St.  Cyprian  (Sept.  26),  Bishop  and  Martyr,  was  an 
African  of  good  birth,  who,  when  converted,  gave  his  all 
in  charity,  and  became  Bishop  of  Carthage.  Exhorting 
Christians  to  firmness  in  persecution,  he  was  himself 
beheaded  A.D.  258.    A  sword  is  his  emblem. 

"  The  Cyprian  of  the  Roman  Calendar  was  a  converted 
magician,  whose  story  is  told  with  that  of  St.  Justina,  in 
Mrs.  Jameson's  Sacred  and  Legotdary  Art. 

"  t  St.  Michael  (Sept.  29),  Archangel,  has  the  sword  and 
dragon.  (Rev.  xii.  7-9.)  He  is  regarded  as  chief  of  all 
Angels.* 

*  The  following  verses :  *'  Rose  Inn  and  Two  Ashes,"  by  Heygate,  are 
worth  considering  in  this  matter : — 

"  The  walls  with  rosy  garlands  glowed 
In  former  years.    1  pass  again  : 
But  of  the  flowers  which  cheered  the  road, 
Naught  but  the  walls  and  name  remain. 

**  A  humble  inn  beside  the  way 

From  three  fair  ash  trees  took  its  name ; 
Their  very  trunks  have  passed  away, 
And  yet  the  title  reads  the  same. 


206 


SYMBOLISM. 


"  S^.  Jerome  (Sept.  30),  Priest,  Confessor,  and  Doctor, 
was  the  most  learned  of  the  Fathers.  He  spent  the 
greater  part  of  his  life  at  Bethlehem  in  study,  translated 
the  Bible  into  Latin,  the  basis  of  the  celebrated  Vulgate, 
and  died  A.D.  422,  aged  eighty.  His  emblem  is  a  lion, 
sign  of  solitude  in  the  wilderness  ;  or  the  model  of  a 
church  in  his  hands,  as  he  so  ably  supported  the  Church  ; 
he  has  also  a  hat,  much  resembling  a  Cardinal's. 

'■^St.  Remigiiis  (Oct.  i).  Bishop,  converted  King  Clovis, 
and  is  often  called  The  Apostle  of  France.  He  was 
Bishop  of  Rheims,  and  died  A.D.  435,  aged  ninety-six. 
His  emblem  is  a  dove  bearing  an  oil-cruse,  as  it  is  said 
that  the  oil  with  which  he  consecrated  Clovis  was  sent 
from  Heaven. 

"St.  Faith  (Oct.  6),  Virgin  and  Martyr,  was  a  French 
girl,  martyred  A.D.  290,  on  a  gridiron,  which  is  her  emblem, 
as  that  of  St.  Lawrence. 

"  St.  Denys  (Oct.  9),  Bishop  and  Martyr,  is  the  Diony- 
sius  the  Areopagite  spoken  of  in  Acts  xvii.  34.  He  is 
often  confounded  with  the  Patron  Saint  of  France,  a 
French  Bishop,  who  is  represented  as  bearing  a  mitred 
head,  in  memorial  of  his  decapitation. 

"  The  Translation  of  King  Edward  the  Confessor 
(Oct.  13)  marks  the  transference  of  that  monarch's  body 
to  a  richer  shrine  by  Thomas  k  Becket  (A.D.  1 163)  in  the 
Abbey  of  Westminster,  which  building  was  originally 
founded  by  King  Edward.    He  was  canonized  [i.e.  pro- 

"  Atid  still  of  MUliael  Mass  we  s/eni, 
T/le  'while  our  Altars  empty  stand; 
Vainly  on  Martin  Mass  I  seek 
Our  suns  last  dlcssing  on  the  land. 

But  plant  the  tree  atui  rose  once  more  ; 
Nor  let  fond  memory  search  in  vain, 
Nor  better  times  'with  si^hs  deplore.*' 


THE  CALENDAR. 


207 


claimed  a  Saint)  for  having  instituted  the  tax  paid  to 
Rome,  called  Peter's  Pence. 

'■'■St.  Etheldreda,  or  Audry  (Oct.  17),  Virgin  Queen, 
was  a  Saxon  princess,  who  built  an  abbey  at  Ely,  and  is 
buried  there.  She  is  represented  with  the  pastoraj  staff 
of  an  Abbess,  and  the  regal  crown  lying  before  her. 

"  t  St.  Luke  (Oct.  18),  Evangelist.    {Sec  p.  191.) 

"St.  Crispin  (Oct.  25),  Martyr,  and  his  brother  Crispi- 
anus,  were  shoemakers,  who  came  from  Rome  to  France, 
with  St.  Denys  of  France,  as  missionaries.  They  were 
beheaded  A.d.  303.  Their  emblems  are  the  shoemaker's 
awl  and  knife.  The  day  stands  on  record  as  that  of  the 
English  victory  at  Agincourt. 

"*  And  Crispin  Crispian  shall  ne'er  go  by, 
From  this  day  to  the  ending  of  the  world. 
But  we  in  it  shall  be  remembered.' 

Shakspeare,  Kiii£;  Henry  V. 

"  t  SS.  Sitnon  and  Jnde  (Oct.  28),  Apostles  and  Martyrs. 
{See  p.  .194) 

All  Saints'  Day  (Nov.  i)  reminds  us  of  our  com- 
munion with  the  whole  of  the  Church  Militant. 

"  The  2nd  Nov.  was  formerly  devoted  to  prayers  for  all 
souls  in  purgatory,  hence  called  All  Souls'  Day. 

"  St.  Leo7iard  (Nov.  6),  Deacon  and  Confessor,  obtained 
of  King  Theodobert  leave  to  free  all  prisoners  whom  he 
should  visit.  He  died  a.d.  500,  and  is  represented  in  the 
Dominican  garb,  with  fetters  in  his  hand,  or  freed  slaves 
beside  him. 

'■'■St.  Martin  (Nov.  11),  Bishop  of  Tours  in  France, 
was  a  great  idol-breaker  or  iconoclast.  He  died  A.D.  397. 
In  youth  he  was  a  soldier,  and  the  French  formerly 
canied  his  helmet  to  war  to  ensure  victory.  He  is  re- 
presented sharing  his  cloak  with  a  beggar,  an  act  of 
charity  in  which  he  was  afterwards  imitated  by  his  name- 


208 


SYMBOLISM. 


sake  Martin  Luther.  St.  Martin  must  have  been  a  great 
and  remarkable  man.  This  day  is  usually  called  Martin- 
mas. 

"St.  Brit  ins,  or  Drice  (Nov.  13),  Bishop  and  Confessor, 
succeeded  St.  Martin  at  Tours,  and  is  said  to  have  proved 
himself  innocent  under  false  accusation  by  the  ordeal  of 
holding  burning  coals  uninjured.  The  burning  coals  are 
his  emblem. 

"St.  Alachiilus,  or  Macloviiis  (Nov.  15),  Bishop,  was 
by  birth  a  Welshman,  of  the  sixth  century,  but,  in  con- 
sequence of  civil  commotions,  fled  to  Brittany.  He  died 
in  France.  The  town  of  St.  Malo  is  named  after  him, 
his  body  having  once  rested  there. 

"St.  Hugh  (Nov.  17),  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  discharged 
his  episcopal  duties  admirably,  but  each  year  withdrew 
to  his  old  monastery  at  Witham  in  Somersetshire,  and 
lived  there  as  a  simple  brother.  He  died  in  London  A.D. 
1200,  and  when  his  body  was  brought  to  Lincoln  for 
burial,  King  John  of  England  and  William  of  Scotland 
having  met  there  for  an  interview,  the  t\vo  monarchs  bore 
the  dead  Bishop  to  the  grave.  It  is  told  that  once, 
coming  to  the  nunnery  of  Godstow,  near  Oxford,  and 
seeing  a  fine  funeral  in  the  choir,  he  asked  whose  it  was, 
and  finding  it  to  be  that  of  the  notorious  Fair  Rosamond, 
he  ordered  her  body  to  be  buried  without  the  building,  as 
a  warning  against  ill  living.  He  has  a  swan,  emblem  of 
purity  and  solitude. 

"St.  Edmund  (Nov.  20),  King  and  MartjT,  after  sacri- 
ficing himself  to  save  his  people,  was  slain  by  the  Danes 
for  refusing  to  renounce  his  faith.  After  being  beaten 
and  scourged,  he  was  shot  to  death  with  arrows.  Arrows 
are  his  emblem.    He  lies  at  Bury  St.  Edmunds. 

"St.  Cecilia  (Nov.  22),  Viigin  and  Martyr,  w.is  a  noble 
Roman  lady,  who  converted  her  husb.md  and  his  brother. 


THE  CALENDAR. 


and  was  killed  by  the  sword  A.D.  290.  Chaucer  gives  her 
legend  in  The  Nun's  Tale.  She  was  a  sw  eet  musician,  is 
regarded  as  patroness  of  church  music,  and  has  an  organ 
for  her  emblem. 

"St.  Clefnent  (Nov.  23),  Bishop  and  Martyr  (Phil.  iv. 
3),  was  third  Bishop  of  Rome,  author  of  the  oldest  liturgy 
(which,  however,  seems  not  to  have  been  publicly  used). 
Two  of  his  epistles  are  also  extant.  He  was  condemned 
to  work  in  the  mines,  and  was  at  last  drowned  with  an 
anchor  tied  about  his  neck,  A.D.  100.  An  anchor  is  his 
symliol. 

"  St.  Catherine  (Nov.  25),  Virgin  and  Martyr,  was  a  very 
learned  Alexandrian  lady,  and  although  there  are  doubts 
of  the  authenticity  of  her  story,  she  is  a  very  popular 
Saint,  fifty-one  churches  being  dedicated  to  her  in  England 
alone.  She  was  said  to  be  niece  of  Constantine  the  Great, 
and  was  put  to  death  A.D.  307,  by  Maximin  or  Maxentius, 
Emperor  of  the  East,  whom  she  boldly  rebuked.  She 
was  first  bound  to  a  wheel  covered  with  shaip  blades,  with 
which  she  was  torn,  and  finally  she  was  beheaded.  A 
wheel  and  palm  are  her  emblems.  Pictures  of  her  are 
also  often  seen  in  which  the  Infant  Christ  places  a  ring  on 
her  finger.  This  refers  to  a  vision,  in  which  she  saw 
herself  made  the  bride  of  Christ.  She  is  patroness  of 
learning. 

"  The  legend  of  St.  Catherine  is  supposed  by  Mrs. 
Jameson  to  have  originated  in  the  story  of  the  heathen 
philosopher,  Hypatia,  so  splendidly  told  by  Kingsley. 

"\St.  Andrew  (Nov.  30),  Apostle  and  Martyr.  [Sec  p. 
1 94-) 

"  St.  Nicholas  (Dec.  6),  Bishop  and  Confessor,  Bishop 
of  Nigra  in  the  time  of  Constantine,  was  noted  for 
benevolence,  and  is  a  very  popular  Saint.    He  has  for 
emblem  three  golden  purses  or  balls,  token  of  his  saving 
P 


2IO 


SYMBOLISM. 


some  poor  girls  from  sin  by  a  secret  gift  of  money.  He  is 
Patron  Saint  of  Russia  and  \'enice,  and  is  the  Santa  Klaus 
of  Germany,  who  brings  the  pretty  things  for  the  Christ- 
mas-trees. His  remains  having  been  transferred  from 
Nigra  to  Bari  by  some  pious  merchants,  for  fear  of  their 
desecration  by  Mohammedans,  he  is  regarded  as  the 
Patron  Saint  of  merchants. 

"  The  Conception  of  the  Blessed  Virght  (Dec.  8)  is  a 
feast  of  inferior  authenticity,  but  is  interesting  as  being 
probably  instituted  by  Anselm,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury', 
in  gratitude  for  the  escape  of  the  fleet  of  William  the 
Conqueror  from  a  storm. 

"St.  Lucy  (Dec.  13),  Virgin  and  MartjT,  was  a  Sicilian 
lady,  who  obtained  by  prayer  the  release  of  her  mother 
from  a  sore  malady,  and  in  gratitude  gave  her  dowry  to 
the  poor.  Finally  she  was  martyred  by  the  sword  (A.D. 
304)  for  her  belief  in  Christ.  Yet  her  sjTnbol  is  a  hght,  or 
two  eyes.  The  cause  is  probably  allegorical,  thougli 
stories  are  told  of  her  taking  out  her  own  eyes  in  obedi- 
ence to  the  injunction  in  St.  Matthew  v.  29  ;  or  of  her 
being  tortured  by  the  loss  of  her  eyes.  In  fact  the  name 
Lucy  (from  Lat.  lux;  gen.  lucis,  light)  causes  this  young 
martyr  to  be  taken  as  the  type  of  heavenly  light  and 
wisdom,  as  St.  Catherine  is  of  learning.  The  four  great 
virgins  of  the  Latin  Church  are  SS.  Cecilia,  Agnes,  Agatha, 
and  Lucia. 

"  O  Sapientia  (Dec.  16)  are  the  first  words  of  a  Latin 
anthem  in  honour  of  Advent,  which  began  on  this  day, 
and  was  sung  until  Christmas. 

"  t^^.  77/«7W(7J,  Apostle  and  Martyr  (Dec.  2 1,  the  shortest 
day).   {See  p.  194.) 

"\  Christmas  Eve  is  a  Fast  to  prepare  us  for  Christmas 
joy. 

^  Christinas  Day  (Dec.  25)  has  been  observed  on  this 


THE  CALENDAR. 


211 


particular  day  since  the  fourth  century.  No  need  to  dilate 
to  an  English  girl  on  the  joys  of  this  blessed  season. 

"  -^St.  Stephen  (Dec.  26),  Proto-Martyr,  or  First  Martyr, 
whose  history  we  find  in  Acts  vi.  vii.  viii.  to  2,  was  a 
martyr  in  deed  and  will.  His  symbol  is  the  stones  used 
in  his  martyrdom. 

"  t'5'/.  JoJm  (Dec.  27),  Evangelist,  was  a  martyr  in  will, 
as  he  proved  by  submitting  at  Rome  to  being  plunged  into 
boiling  oil ;  but  God  forbade  it  to  injure  him,  and  he  was 
then  banished  to  Patmos.  This  circumstance  occurred 
before  the  Latin  Gate,  whence  a  separate  festival  (on  May 
6)  was  appointed  for  it,  called  .S7.  John  Ante  Poriam 
Latinam.    For  his  evangelical  symbol  see  p.  191. 

"  t  The  Holy  Iti7tocents  (Dec.  28)  are  the  children 
murdered  by  command  of  Herod,  martyrs  in  deed,  though 
not  in  will.  This  festival  suggests  most  touching  thoughts 
— that  our  Lord's  earthly  reign  began  in  blood  not  only  for 
Himself  (as  by  the  circumcision)  but  also  for  His  own  to 
whom  He  came,  and  so  these  dear  children,  the  'little 
ones,'  were  privileged  to  lay  the  first  stones  of  the  kingdom. 
{See  Luke  xviii.  16,  17.) 

St.  Silvester  (Dec.  31),  Bishop,  ends  the  year.  He 
was  Bishop  of  Rome  in  the  fourth  century,  and  is  said  to 
have  converted  and  baptized  Constantino  and  his  mother, 
St.  Helena.  But  as  Constantine  was  only  baptized  on  his 
death-bed,  and  Sylvester  died  long  before,  A.D.  335,  we 
must  allow  much  in  this  and  other  stories  for  legendary 
exaggeration.  He  is  represented  in  art  in  the  dress  of  a 
Pope  with  a  bull  at  his  feet,  from  the  story  that  in  dis- 
puting, at  the  Empress  Helena's  command,  with  Jewish 
magicians,  he  confounded  them  by  raising  to  life  by  Christ's 
name  a  bull  which  one  of  them  had  killed  by  a  magical 
word. 

"So  ends  the  Calendar.    Many  of  the  stories  are 


212 


SYMBOLISM. 


legendary,  some  few  scarcely  edifying,  and  certainly  our 
British  Saints  to  whom  prominence  is  given  do  not  outshine 
the  rest.  But  on  the  whole,  you  see  that  the  devout 
contemplation  of  the  histor>-  of  those  who  have  suffered 
for  the  faith  can  do  nothing  but  benefit  us  and  urge  us  on, 
I  trust,  to  similar  aspirations." 

"  But  why  are  days  fixed  for  each  Saint  ?  Are  we  sure 
that  the  martyrs  died  on  those  days?" 

"  By  no  means  ;  as  you  see,  even  Christmas,  the  day  of 
Christ's  birth,  was  not  fixed  for  three  centuries.  But  if 
no  day  were  fixed,  you  may  be  sure  all  days  would  slip  by 
unobserved,  and  the  pious  history  be  forgotten. 

"  There  are  many  more  Saints,  besides  those  mentioned 
in  the  English  Calendar,  whose  histories  are  deeply  inte- 
resting ;  but  for  these,  I  must  refer  you  again  to  Mrs.  Jame- 
son's Sacred  and  Legefidary  Art.  There  is  one,  however, 
so  characteristic  and  so  valuable  in  its  symbolism  that  I 
must  conclude  with  it :  it  is  that  of  St.  Christopher.  You 
know  his  figure  by  his  gigantic  size  and  by  the  child  borne 
on  his  shoulder.  A  representation  of  St.  Christopher  on 
a  church  or  house  was  supposed  to  ward  off  evil  influences. 

"  The  longer  and  more  allegorical  legend  says  that  the 
ancient  name  of  this  Saint  was  Psychicus,  the  intelligent 
being,  or  man  in  his  natural  state.  He  was  a  giant  who 
yearned  to  serve  the  strongest  of  beings.  So  he  went 
forth  to  seek  this  master.  First,  he  saw  a  great  king  with 
a  pompous  retinue.  It  was  Cosmos,  the  world,  and  Psy- 
chicus thought  this  king  was  the  strongest  of  mortals,  and 
vowed  to  serve  him.  But,  behold !  as  they  marched  on, 
an  old  man  in  a  poor  brown  habit  passed  by,  and  Cosmos 
was  forced  to  bow.  'Why  is  this?'  asked  Psychicus. 
'  Because  the  old  man  is  a  Saint,'  they  said.  So  Psychicus 
saw  that  there  was  a  stronger  than  Cosmos,  and  he  left 
his  service.    Next,  he  saw  the  stern  wild  train  of  Ophis. 


ST.  CHRISTOPHER. 


213 


the  serpent,  and  heard  that  he  was  the  strongest,  and  so 
joined  him,  and  was  bound  willingly  in  iron  chains  behind 
the  car  of  Ophis.  But,  lo !  they  passed  a  cross,  and  Ophis 
turned  pale  and  trembled.  So  there  was  a  stronger  than 
Opliis.  Then  Psychicus  exerted  all  his  strength  and  tore 
himself  from  his  bonds,  though  they  had  eaten  into  his 
flesh,  and  went  to  dwell  in  a  hermitage  beside  the  ford, 
charitably  carrying  pilgrims  over,  and  there  he  awaited 
his  master. 

"  One  night,  in  the  midst  of  a  fierce  tempest,  he  heard 
a  child's  voice  calling  him,  and  going  forth,  he  found  a 
gentle  and  beautiful  boy  standing  beside  the  stream.  In 
vain  the  giant  tried  to  detain  him ;  he  must  be  carried 
over.  Psychicus  took  him  on  his  shoulders  and  plunged 
into  the  water.  But  half  way  through  the  river,  he  tottered 
and  almost  sank  under  the  enormous  weight  he  bore. 
'Who  art  Thou?'  he  cried.  'Carry  me  across,'  was  all 
the  child  said.  And,  lo  !  when  he  had  struggled  through, 
the  boy  leaped  down,  and  when  Psychicus  looked,  it  was 
his  master,  Christ.  Hence  he  is  called  Christoferos,  the 
Christ-bearer." 

"And  who  was  Christopher?'' 

"  He  was,  he  is,  you  and  me,  and  all  about  us  who  are 
seeking  our  Master,  and  who  must  be  Christ-bearers,  and 
Cross-bcarcrs  too,  if  we  would  really  find  Him." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


<r{)urt5  StrcSitttture.* 


"  Tlie  King's  Daughter  is  all  glorious  within;  her  clothing  is  of 
•wrought  gold" 


*'  From  each  carved  fujok  and  fretted  letid 
Cornice  and  gallery  seem  to  send 
Tones  tluit  with  scrafh  hymns  might  blend. 

"  Three  solemn  parts  togetJier  twine 
In  Itarmony's  mysterious  line; 
Three  solemn  aisles  approach  tlie  shrink. 
Yet  all  are  one,  togetlier  all, 
Jn  thoughts  that  awe  but  not  appal. 
Teach  tlie  adoring  heart  to  fall." 


LTHOUGH  the  Cathedral  of  Barminster  was  close 


by,  Mrs.  Askell  and  her  niece  went  there  more 
seldom  than  to  St.  Salvador's,  where  there  was  more 
fervour  in  the  services.  But  on  many  a  Saturday  and 
Sunday  afternoon,  when  the  anthems  were  always  the 
finest,  Joan  spent  there  a  quiet  hour  of  calm  trance-like 
enjoyment.  She  used  to  say  that  the  Cathedral  service 
sent  her  mind  into  a  delicious  sleep,  and  that  St.  Salvador's 
woke  it  up  and  made  her  think  of  her  daily  duties. 

Once  she  had  been  over  the  whole  of  the  large  Cathe- 
dral edifice,  and  listened  with  an  uncomprehending 
amazement  to  the  accounts  of  triforium,  clerestorj',  and 
transept.  On  the  day  of  the  lesson  following  that  on 
symbolism  Mrs.  Askell  bade  Joan  dress  to  accompany 

*  The  young  reader  is  requested  to  use  the  glossar)-  (pp.  230-239)  to 
explain  the  many  technical  terms  unavoidably  employed  in  this  chapter. 


Keble,  On  Trinity  Sunday. 


THE  CRYPT.  2IS 

her  to  the  cathedral.  "  Our  subject  to-cky  is  architecture," 
she  said,  "  and  I  will  give  my  little  lesson  on  a  spot  where 
illustrations  are  at  hand.  I  hope  you  will  enjoy  your 
journey  over  the  building  better  than  before  in  your  very 
unenlightened  state  of  mind." 

"  I  hope  so  too,"  answered  Joan ;  "  it  was  not  very 
amusing  then." 

In  a  short  time  they  were  within  those  ancient  precincts, 
where  the  light  came  with  a  cold  beam,  and  the  low  voices 
of  the  vergers  re-echoed  in  a  hollow  way.  Mrs.  Askell 
had  leave  to  roam  about  at  her  own  free  will,  and,  with 
her  niece,  was  soon  deep  in  the  dim  and  damp  crypt, 
with  its  mouldering  smell. 

"  Here,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "  I  will  not  keep  you  long, 
for  1  have  not  much  to  show  you.  Only  come  to  this 
corner,  and  see  how  in  this  recess  an  outer  layer  of  stonee 
has  been  removed  on  purpose  to  exhibit  a  rougher  wall 
within,  of  small  stones,  laid  herring-bone  fashion,  or  like 
a  pack  of  cards  leaning  one  against  another,  and  a  second 
pack  underneath,  leaning  in  the  reverse  direction,  and  so 
on.  That  is  Saxon  work,  the  oldest  kind  known  in 
English  church  architecture,  and  very  little  of  it  is  found 
at  all.  One  often  hears  of  Saxon  churches,  but  one  can 
hardly  ever  be  sure  that  they  were  really  built  before  the 
Norman  Invasion,  a.d.  1066.  Almost  all  we  know  is, 
that  the  mode  of  building  was  rough,  not  nearly  so  finished 
as  that  of  the  Romans,  many  of  whose  buildings,  of  far 
greater  age,  are  still  in  good  preservation. 

"  Now,  leave  the  bit  of  Saxon  wall,  of  which  the  cathe- 
dral authorities  are  so  proud  that  they  have  cleared  off  the 
outer  wall  to  show  it  us.  And  they  are  justly  proud, 
because  it  shows  that  the  cathedral  is  very  aged ;  that  a 
church  stood  here  before  the  Norman  times. 

"  Observe  the  strong,  finely-finished  masonry  of  these 


2l6  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


short  thick  pillars  supporting  the  roof  of  the  crypt.  They 
are  Norman.  But  we  will  go  up  to  daylight,  and  we  shall 
presently  see  Nonnan  architecture  in  greater  beauty." 

They  were  soon  pacing  up  and  down  the  main  body  of 
the  building. 

"This,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "is  called  the  nave,  from  the 
Greek  Naos,  or  Latin  Navis,  signifying  a  ship,  the  favourite 
symbol  of  the  Church  in  primitive  times." 

"  I  thought,"  said  Joan,  innocently,  "that  this  was  called 
the  centre  aisle." 

"  So  it  might  ha\'e  been,"  replied  her  aunt,  "  if  the  body 
of  a  bird  were  called  its  centre  wing." 

"Oh!"  answered  Joan  ;  "but  I  remember  being  told 
that  it  was  called  the  aisle,  from  the  French  allee,  because 
it  was  the  passage  or  alley  for  walking  along." 

"  No,  my  dear  child  ;  you  may  depend  upon  it  that  the 
mere  passage  would  not  suggest  the  name  to  be  given  to 
the  largest  and  most  imposing  part  of  the  building.  But 
besides  this,  the  nave  of  the  cathedral  has  no  permanent 
passage  at  all.  The  whole  of  it  may  be  occupied  with 
moveable  benches  or  chairs  for  the  people.  Perhaps  you 
are  hardly  aware  that  the  congregation  are  quite  out  of 
place  in  the  choir,  where,  in  cathedrals,  they  are  now 
generally  placed  for  Divine  service." 

Having  explained  that  the  building  was  planned  Uke  a 
cross,  its  length  being  the  nave  and  choir,  and  the  anus 
being  the  transepts  or  parts  going  out  to  right  and  left  from 
the  entrance  to  the  choir,  Mrs.  Askell  turned  round  at  the 
west  end  of  the  nave  to  admire  its  noble  proportions. 
The  long  row  of  massive  round  pillars  almost  hid  the 
narrow  aisles  on  either  side.  These  pillars  stood  on  square 
bases,  slightly  moulded,  and  their  capitals,  finished  with 
a  small  necking,  were  cushioned  out  so  as  to  receive  a 
small  projecting  abacus,  square  in  plan,  above  which  rose 


THE  TRIFORIUM. 


217 


the  massive  arches.  The  arches  had  flat  soffites  or  under- 
surfaces  ;  they  were  slightly  recessed  on  their  surfaces, 
and  were  finished  above  with  a  label,  or  small  projecting 
moulding.  At  the  alternate  pillars  rose  a  vaulting  shaft, 
terminating  with  a  capital  immediately  beneath  the  vaulted 
ceihng  which  spanned  the  nave. 

Above  the  arches  was  another  tier  of  arches  of  similar 
form,  but  in  a  couplet  over  each  main  arch,  and  these  had 
very  short  squat  piers  and  columns  between.  A  kind  of 
gallery  above  the  roof  of  the  aisles,  called  the  triforium, 
showed  dark  and  gloomy  behind  these  arches  ;  and  above 
this  was  the  clerestory,  or  row  of  windows  under  the  roof, 
with  their  rounded  arch. 

"  Look,"  said  Joan,  almost  starting  with  surprise  ;  "do 
you  see  the  two  men  creeping  past  those  windows  and  along 
a  narrow  passage  formed  in  the  thickness  of  the  wall  ?" 

In  truth,  she  had  not  till  now  noticed  this  peculiar 
arrangement,  and  but  for  this  incident  her  attention  would 
not  have  been  called  to  it.  She  longed  to  traverse  the 
building  through  these  narrow  chambers,  and  could  hardly 
be  persuaded  that  such  a  journey,  though  possibly  fitted 
for  the  ardent  artist  whom  she  had  just  seen  in  company 
with  one  of  the  cathedral  vergers,  taking  a  close  survey 
of  every  part,  was  not  calculated  for  the  more  delicate 
nerves  of  women  and  girls.  This  however  served  to  add 
to  the  growing  mysteriousness  of  the  sacred  pile. 

The  style  of  the  building  impressed  them  with  a  sense 
of  solemnity,  dignity,  grandeur,  and  imperturbable  repose, 
but  it  was  lacking  in  the  grace  and  elegance  which  gave 
a  charm  to  succeeding  styles. 

"  This  portion  is  of  the  Norman  period,  and  hence  is 
called  the  Norman  style,"  said  Mrs.  Askcll,  "and  there 
on  the  wall  below  the  windows  is  one  of  the  peculiarities 
occasionally  found  in  it.   Do  you  notice  some  httle  arches 


2I« 


CHURCH  AjRunlTECTURE. 


carved  simply  for  ornament,  forming  a  sort  of  recessed 
continual  panel  in  the  wall  ?  you  see  they  are  round  arches, 
interlacing  with  one  another  so  as  to  form  a  series  of 
pointed  arches  between  them.  Some  persons  suppose 
that  it  was  this  which  gave  the  notion  of  building  all 
arches  pointed,  instead  of  round.  It  is  now,  however, 
tolerably  well  established  that  the  pointed  arch  with  its 
graceful  curves  came  from  the  Saracens,  or  at  any  rate 
from  the  East.  But,  great  as  was  the  revolution  of  archi- 
tecture occasioned  by  the  introduction  of  this  feature,  the 
mouldings  and  finishings  did  not  in  the  first  instance 
undergo  much  change.  The  Norman  style  lasted  nearly 
1 20  years — from  1066  to  11 80;  and  from  it,  by  gradual 
stages,  the  First  Pointed  style  took  its  rise.  This  style 
has  been  popularly  called  Early  English,  as  though  other 
countries  were  lagging  far  behind  our  own  in  the  progress 
of  Christian  art.    Let  us  go  and  find  some." 

It  was  not  lack  of  interest  in  the  Norman  architecture 
of  the  nave  that  made  them  now  hasten  on  as  they  ap- 
proached the  choir.  At  the  top  of  a  flight  of  steps  they 
came  upon  an  open  screen.  Passing  through  the  iron 
gates,  they  stood  beneath  the  lofty  vaulted  ceiling  which 
had  impressed  them  with  its  beauty  from  the  west  end  of 
the  nave.  It  was  the  tall  screen  at  the  back  of  the  altar. 
They  were  now  in  a  chapel  unused  for  Divine  service,  in 
which  the  architecture  gave  an  impression  of  greater 
lightness  and  grace  than  did  that  of  the  nave,  and  the 
windows  were  tall  and  narrow,  finished  at  the  top  with 
plain  pointed  arches.  These,  Mrs.  Askell  explained,  were 
called  Lancet  lights  or  windows,  and  were  sometimes  found 
singly  on  the  wall,  sometimes  arranged  in  couplets,  or 
three,  five,  or  seven  together,  but  they  were  divided  by 
stone  and  were  clearly  distii^ct  windows.  Mrs.  Askell 
said  the  finest  specimen  of  this  sort  of  window  was  in  the 


219 


north  transept  of  York  Minster,  where  five  such  windows, 
very  high,  stand  side  by  side,  and  are  called  the  Five 
Sisters.  The  Early  English  style  lasted  from  about  1180 
to  about  1280. 

Mrs.  Askell  and  Joan  now  went  back  to  the  nave,  and 
proceeded  to  examine  the  northern  transept  and  aisle. 

"Here,"  said  the  former,  "is  indeed  a  difference. 
Describe  it  to  me." 

"  In  the  Early  English  style  the  arches  were  higher  and 
more  pointed,  and  the  columns  had  little  detached 
columns  or  shafts  round  them.  Here  the  shafts  are 
attached,  and  they  become  as  it  were  a  portion  of  the 
pillar  itself ;  and  their  tops  or  'capitals'  are  carved  with 
rich  foliage,  represented  much  more  naturally  than  the 
other.    What  is  this  style.'" 

"  The  Second  Pointed  or  Decorated,  which  extended 
from  about  1280  to  13S0.  You  will  observe,  too,  that  the 
arches  have  deep  rich  mouldings.  And  now  look  at  the 
windows  in  that  North  aisle.  How  do  they  differ  from 
the  others  ?" 

"  They  are  not  round  hke  Norman,  nor  simply  pointed 
like  Early  English  ;  but  they  are  very  much  larger,  and 
have  small  stone  divisions  which  do  not  separate  them 
into  distinct  windows." 

"  Those  divisions  are  called  mielHons." 

"Thank  you.  And  then  the  muUions  divide  towards 
the  top  into  a  sort  of  branching  pattern." 

"  Fairly  described.  There  you  have  the  distinctive 
mark  of  the  Decorated  style  ;  namely,  the  large  windows 
with  mullions  passing  at  the  top  into  branching  or  geo- 
metrical designs  called  tracery.  This  style  is  by  some 
considered  the  climax  of  pointed  architecture  ;  it  has 
sufficient  ornament  to  beautify  it  and  not  so  much  as  to 
overload  it.   Others,  however,  consider  the  Early  Enghsh 


220  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


in  its  highest  development  as  the  perfection  of  pointed 
architecture. 

"  Now  let  us  go  into  the  choir."  They  passed  through 
the  door  of  the  screen  and  were  in  the  chancel  or  choir. 
Looking  at  the  great  east  window,  Mrs.  Askell  said : 
"What  is  the  chief  difference  between  that  window  and 
those  you  have  just  described.'" 

After  considering  it,  Joan  answered  :  "  The  mullions  go 
straight  up  to  the  top." 

"  Right !  It  is  because  those  perpendicular  lines  go,  as 
you  say,  up  to  the  very  top,  that  the  style  \\'liich  followed 
the  Decorated  is  called  Perpendicular.  Whatever  other 
patterns  of  stone  there  may  be,  you  observe  that  they  do 
not  interfere  with  those  straight  lines.  The  third  Pointed 
or  Perpendicular  style  began  about  .\.V>.  13S0,  and  was 
almost  the  last  style  in  English  Church  architecture.  It 
became  too  florid  and  overburdened  with  ornament ;  one 
of  the  finest  specimens  is  Henry  VII.'s  Chapel  at  West- 
minster. In  the  latest  work  of  this  sort,  the  tops  of  the 
windows,  instead  of  being  handsomely  pointed,  are  often 
so  much  flattened  that  they  have  a  very  ugly  look.  This 
is  called  Debased  Perpendicular. 

"With  the  general  distribution  of  Church  lands  and 
property,  and  the  overthrow  of  Church  power  in  Henry 
Vlll.'s  reign,  ecclesiastical  architecture  ceased  almost 
entirely,  and  henceforth  we  find  no  great  Church  work  of 
this  sort  going  on.  In  Elizabeth's  reign  an  adaptation  of 
the  Perpendicular  style  was  used  for  domestic  architec- 
ture ;  the  houses  called  Elizabethan  are  well  known. 

"With  the  Restoration  (1660)  Church  matters  began  to 
improve,  and  after  the  Great  Fire  of  London  in  1666, 
when  the  old  Cathedral  of  St.  Paul's  was  destroyed,  a 
new  one  was  built  by  the  noted  Sir  Christopher  Wren. 
The  old  cathedral  had  a  great  central  spire,  and  was  built 


ST.  PAUL'S. 


221 


in  the  pointed  style.  But  Wren  lived  in  a  time  when 
architects  despised  all  pointed  styles,  and  called  them  in 
reproach  Gothic,  fit  for  Goths  and  Vandals.  The  name 
has  stuck,  but  has  become  honourable,  and  is  not  inappro- 
priate, as  the  style  was  really  the  invention  of  the  Gothic 
race.  Wren  admired  the  classical  style  only,  and  rebuilt 
St.  Paul's  in  it." 

"  I  always  thought  St.  Paul's  so  co/d,"  said  Joan. 

"  So  it  is.  But  then  it  has  never  been  properly  fitted 
or  used,  as  it  ought  to  be,  for  showing  forth  the  grandeur 
and  ceaselessness  of  the  Church's  worship ;  and  it  is  sadly 
deficient  in  colour.*  But  no  alterations  would  make  it  a 
genuine  expression  of  northern  Christianity.  We  are  not 
Italians  and  our  climate  is  not  Italian,  and  so  St.  Paul's 
is  an  incongruity.  It  has  a  colossal  grandeur  about  it, 
but  it  lacks  all  the  romance,  the  poetiy,  the  mystery  of 
the  art  of  the  middle  ages.  It  may  excite  our  admiration, 
but  the  attractive  grace  which  appeals  to  our  feelings  and 
imaginations,  and  reminds  us  of  the  past  by  its  hallowed 
association,  is  wanting. 

"  In  fact  it  was  a  foreign  style,  unsuited  to  our  northern 
atmosphere,  imported  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  by  the  great  luminary  of  the  day,  who  had  prose- 
cuted his  studies  in  Italy.  And  as  our  old  cathedrals 
impressed  their  character  upon  the  whole  of  the  architec- 
ture of  the  country,  so  did  the  newly-adopted  style  shed 
its  influence  upon  succeeding  times,  and  the  great  aim  of 
art  seemed  to  he  to  produce  effect  by  gigantic  blocks  of 
stone,  or  a  semblance  of  them,  instead  of  cultivating  the 
scientific  method  of  constructing  even  the  largest  buildings 
and  the  loftiest  spires  '  with  stones  no  bigger  than  a  man 
could  cany  on  his  shoulder  from  scaffold  to  scaffold  ; '  for 

*  Mrs.  Askell  would  li.ive  spoken  differently  a  few  years  later.  At  the 
present  day  (1875)  St.  Paul's  is  nobly  used. 


222 


CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


such  was  the  taunt  which  the  masqns  of  the  new  St.  Paul's 
used  when,  glorying  over  the  destruction  of  the  old,  they 
raised  the  huge  pile  which  is  now  the  Cathedral  of  the 
metropolis. 

"  And  with  all  its  wonderful  variety  of  style  in  its  various 
parts,  there  is  a  wonderful  harmony  throughout  the  whole 
of  our  Cathedral  of  Barminster.  This  arises,  no  doubt, 
from  the  style  having  been  developed  from  age  to  age  in 
accordance  with  certain  scientific  and  structural  laws 
handed  down  by  oral  tradition,  whilst  such  incongruities 
as  we  see  in  the  western  towns,  in  Westminster  Abbey  for 
example,  arise  from  the  more  modern  buildings,  after  the 
tradition  was  lost,  following  merely  the  forms  of  a  foreign 
style.  And  hence,  too,  the  incongi-uities  and  the  want  of 
harmony  and  repose  in  so  many  of  the  modern  imitations 
of  old  work,  called  '  Modern  Gothic'  The  old  forms  are 
followed  without  the  guides  and  pervading  principles 
which  formed  the  basis  of  medieval  architecture. 

"  But,  besides  all  this,  the  Church  herself  was  suffering 
from  the  apathy  which  succeeded  to  the  Great  Rebellion, 
when  fanaticism  was  let  loose  upon  the  sacred  buildings, 
which,  till  then,  retained  most  of  their  former  beauty  in 
form  and  colour. 

"With  classical  architecture,  however,  we  have  but 
little  to  do.  I  am  going  to  give  you  Parker's  Smaller 
Glossary  of  Architecture,  which  will  give  you  a  fair  idea 
of  all  the  details  most  necessary  to  be  known.  You  wiU 
there  find  an  explanation  of  any  architectural  tenns  you 
meet  with,  as  in  a  dictionary.  Just  now,  merely  to  interest 
you  in  the  subject,  I  will  point  out  a  few  more  of  the 
details  of  this  cathedral  in  which  we  arc,  and  then  give 
you  a  sort  of  small  alphabetical  glossary  of  a  few  of  the 
terms  most  commonly  met  with. 

"  You  perceive,  then,  that  one  rough-and-ready  method 
of  taking  the  style  and  age  of  a  church  may  be  ?" 


WINDOWS. 


223 


"  By  the  windows  ?" 

"Yes.  What  is  the  distinctive  mark  of  Norman  win- 
dows ?" 

"  They  have  a  semicircular  arch  at  top." 

"Right.  In  the  First  Pointed,  or  Early  English,  the 
windows  are  of  two  sorts,  almost  distinct  from  each  other. 
The  earlier  are  commonly  narrow  lights,  with  pointed  or 
lancet-shaped  arched  heads.  They  are  often  placed  in 
couplets  or  in  triplets,  or  in  five  or  Bven  seven  lights 
gracefully  graduated  in  their  width  and  height  towards 
the  centre  light.  Sometimes  they  are  like  distinct  pierc- 
ings of  the  simplest  form  in  the  wall,  and  at  other  times 
they  are  contained  together  under  one  moulding  or  label, 
or  drip-course  (as  it  is  termed),  which,  however,  in  other 
instances  follows  over  each  light  in  succession. 

"The  later  period  of  this  style  may  well  be  called 
Traceried  First  Pointed.  It  shows  the  first  attempts  at 
tracery  by  mere  piercings  in  the  head  between  two  lancet 
lights,  and  afterwards  these  become  larger  and  more  im- 
portant as  the  space  of  wall  between  the  lights  becomes 
narrower,  till  it  forms  what  is  called  a  muUion. 

"  This  leads  us  to  the  Second  Pointed,  or  Decorated. 
This  also  consists  of  two  almost  distinct  styles.  The 
windows  commonly  consist  of  several  lights,  separated  by 
muUions.  But  in  the  earlier  period  of  this  style  the  trace- 
ried heads  of  the  windows  are  arranged  geometrically  in 
circles,  regular  curves,  quatrefoils,  &c. ;  while  in  the  later 
these  forms  branch  or  spread  in  flowing  or  continuous 
curves.  In  either  case  the  cusping  or  foliation  is  a  dis- 
tinguishing feature.  For  the  history  of  this  ornament 
you  must  inquire  when  more  acquainted  with  the  first 
outlines  of  the  science. 

"  The  Third  Pointed,  or  Perpendicular,  has  somewhat 
similar  windows,  but  with  the  tracery  consisting  chiefly  of 


224  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


vertical  lines  dividing  up  the  head  into  a  series  of  narrow 
lights,  still  cusped.  The  same  principle  is  carried  out  in 
Third  Pointed  work,  so  many  straight  lines  going  from 
top  to  bottom,  whether  of  window  or  panelling,  as  to  be- 
come often  quite  tiresome. 

"There  are  also  other  means  of  discerning  the  style; 
e.g.  by  the  mouldings,  which  in  the  Norman  work  con- 
sisted chiefly  of  simple  rounds  or  beads  and  fiat  recessed 
surfaces,  and  afterwards  in  Early  English  were  deeply  cut 
into  hollows  and  rounds,  which  gradually  became  thin 
and  wiry  subsequently  to  the  middle  period.  But  to 
distinguish  a  style  by  mouldings  requires  much  com- 
parison and  experience. 

"  Now  tell  me,  what  is  the  entire  cycle  of  this  architec- 
ture called  ?" 

"  Gothic." 

"  And  how  long  did  each  variety  last  ?" 
"  Let  me  see — Norman  comes  first." 
"  Yes ;  it  was  also  called  Romanesque  Gothic,  on  ac- 
count of  its  semicircular  arches." 

"  It  lasted  from  about  1066  to  about  1280." 
"  Under  what  kings,  then  ?" 

"William  the  Conqueror,  William  Rufus,  Henry  I., 
Stephen,  and  Henry  II." 
"  And  Early  English?" 

"From  iiSo  to  12S0,  under  Richard  I.,  John,  and 
Heniy  III." 
"  Decorated  ? " 

"From  1280  to  1380,  under  Edward  I.,  Edward  II., 
and  Edward  111." 
"  Perpendicular.''" 

"  From  1380  till  about  1420,  when  it  been  me  debased, 
and  its  richness  was  lost." 

"Yes;  but  in  each  case  the  several  styles  overlapped 


DA  TES. 


225 


each  other.  But  this  was  especially  the  case  with  the 
Decorated,  which  was  still  in  vogue  at  the  end  of  the 
fourteenth  century,  after  the  invention  of  the  peculiar 
mannerism  of  the  Perpendicular." 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  Joan  brought  out  all  these 
wise  answers  as  readily  as  it  seems  here.  Her  aunt 
helped  her.  But  she  was,  on  the  whole,  careful  and 
intelligent,  as  usual. 

"You  will  not  think,"  added  Mrs  Askell,  "that  all 
Decorated,  or  Early  English,  or  Norman  must  be  limited 
exactly  to  the  dates  given.  When  a  new  fashion  was 
originated,  it  took  many  years  to  disseminate.  Then, 
again,  there  have  been  many  attempts  at  revivals  in  our 
own  day,  as  St.  Salvador's,  which,  though  built  but  yester- 
day, is  in  the  Decorated  style.  But  you  know  at  least 
that  a  Perpendicular  building  cannot  be  older  than  about 
1380,  nor  a  Decorated  than  1280,  and  so  on. 

"  Here  are  notes  of  the  characteristics  of  the  different 
styles  ;  keep  them  and  learn  them  as  well  as  you  can,  not 
merely  by  rote,  but  testing  and  comparing  them  in  every 
old  church  you  visit,  remembring,  however,  that  in  the 
gi-eat  majority  of  our  small  village  churches  the  simplicity 
and  rudeness  of  the  work  are  such  as  to  make  it  appear 
almost  a  different  style.  You  will  find  it  interesting  to 
have  such  means  of  verifying  the  age  of  a  building,  and  of 
comparing  with  others  its  points  of  difference  and  of 
similarity.  And  the  powers  of  accurate  observation  and 
continual  comparison  necessary  for  obtaining  an  insight 
into  the  subject  will  prove  one  of  the  best  possible  helps 
to  mental  cuUure.  You  will  soon  learn  to  be  very  careful 
about  drawing  hasty  conclusions.  You  will  not  rashly 
say  :  '  This  building  cannot  be  older  than  such  a  century, 
for  the  window-tracery  is  geometrical,  flowing,  or  perpen- 
dicular.' Windows  wcie  often  enlarged  or  changed  in  their 
Q 


226  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


detail  in  centuries  later  than  the  date  of  the  main  building. 
Even  old  tracery  has  been  sometimes  rebuilt  into  the  new 
mouldings  of  a  later  period.  Again,  you  would  say  that 
a  building  dates  from  its  earliest  commencement,  and  you 
may  find  in  some  remote  corner  signs  of  Norman  or  even 
Saxon  work,  testifying  to  an  origin  far  earlier  than  the 
main  building  would  lead  you  to  suppose.  Even  the  nave 
of  Winchester  Cathedral,  having  much  of  the  character 
of  Perpendicular  Third  Pointed  style,  was  set  down  to 
William  of  Wykeham  (1324-1404),  till  Professor  Willis 
made  out  conclusively  that  it  was  only  altered  by  him 
upon  the  original  Norman  building.  Thus,  you  see,  even 
when  you  ha\  e  well  studied  your  glossary,  it  can  only  be 
long  experience  which  can  give  weight  to  any  judgment 
formed  as  to  the  age  of  a  building.  You  may  hazard  some 
probable  guesses,  but  you  will  find  it  more  profitable  to 
be  always  searching  after  infonnation,  or  listening  with 
intelligence  while  wiser  people  are  talking." 

"  Ah,  dear  auntie,  I  know  what  you  mean.  You  are 
afraid  I  shall  be  trj'ing  to  show  oft'." 

"  'A  little  learning  is  a  dangerous  thing,'  Joan.  But,  to 
do  you  justice,  I  do  not  think  you  are  likely  to  show  off 
your  ignorance,  and  to  make  yourself  ridiculous  by  a 
foolish  display,  which  is,  to  my  mind,  almost  the  most 
nauseous  thing  one  can  see  in  a  girl.  When  I  do  see  it, 
I  alwaj  s  think  how  much  more  agreeable  the  young  lady 
might  have  been  if  left  to  be  a  nice,  ignorant  scullery- 
maid." 

Here  Mrs.  Askell  handed  her  notes  to  Joan. 

"Saxon  Architecture  was  for  the  most  part  in  wood, 
and,  consequently,  few  remains  are  left.  Such  towers,  &c., 
as  seem  of  Saxon  work,  appear  to  be  built  after  the  model 
of  wooden  edifices.  The  father  of  Knut,  or  Canute, 
having  burned  the  wooden  churches  of  the  Sa.\ons,  Knut 


NORMAN.  227 

ordered  stone  ones  to  be  built  instead,  which  were  naturally 
modelled  after  the  old  churches.  One  of  the  peculiarities 
of  building  was  the  herring-bone  mode  of  laying  stones 
in  the  wall ;  and  another  is  called  long  and  short  work, 
which  means  that  the  quoins  or  corners  of  the  walls  were 
built  by  setting  one  stone  up  on  end,  and  tying  it  into  the 
wall  by  an  alternate  stone  laid  horizontally.  The  arches 
were  semicircular,  the  windows  round-headed,  with  a  deep 
splayed  recess  externally.  Sometimes  the  head  was  formed 
by  two  stones  leaning  one  against  another,  so  as  to  form 
a  point  or  angle.  The  towers  had  high-peaked  or  pyra- 
midal roofs  covered  with  tiles,  or,  more  commonly,  with 
oak  shingles.  But  on  the  whole  remains  of  so-called 
Saxon  work  are  very  rare  and  very  doubtful,  and  may 
prove  to  be  only  early  Norman. 

"Norman  Arcliilii  lurc  came  in  with  the  Conquest,  and 
is  majestic  and  solid  in  its  character.  The  buttresses  are 
of  small  projection.  The  arches  are  semicircular,*  the 
windows  small  and  sometimes  (especially  in  towers) 
arranged  in  pairs  close  together,  with  a  small  shaft  with 
a  flat  cap  between.  The  main  pillars  of  the  nave  were  at 
first  massive  and  plain,  but  in  the  twelfth  century  were 
sometimes  channelled  and  ornamented  with  a  kind  of 
diaper  or  spiral  pattern.  The  churches  have  towers,  strong 
and  heavy,  but  no  spires  or  pinnacles,  except  a  pyramidal 
roof  covered  probably  with  lead  or  wood  shingle,  and 
sometimes  a  circular  turret  capped  with  an  cxtiiiguislicr- 
shaped  peak.  Sometimes  the  wall  or  the  head  of  a 
window  was  pierced  with  a  trefoil  or  cjuatrcfoil,  and  by 
degrees  a  cusping  or  foliation  was  introduced  into  the 

*  It  must  be  reitiembercd  that  on  the  Continent  and  hi  Scoihiiiil  the  round- 
headed  opening  was  sometimes  used  in  the  period  of  tlic  Fli)riil  IVrjicn- 
diciilar  which  came  in  some  four  centuries  later  ;  and  tlten  it  was 


228 


CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


heads  of  the  lights.  The  most  characteristic  ornaments 
are  the  zigzag  carried  around  windows  or  doors,  and  beak 
heads,  lapping  on  to  a  large  bead  or  roll  moulding.  To- 
wards 1 150  the  pointed  arch  was  introduced. 

"  A  good  early  specimen  is  the  chapel  in  the  White 
Tower  of  London  ;  a  good  late  one,  Romsey  Abbey  in 
Hampshire. 

"  Early  English,  or  First  Pointed,  succeeded  the  Nor- 
man towards  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century.  Like  the 
Norman,  it  developed  in  the  course  of  its  hundred  years 
into  greater  grace  and  lightness.  The  arches  are  lancet- 
shaped,  more  or  less  sharply  pointed ;  sometimes  the 
heads  of  the  windows  were  pierced  with  a  trefoil  or  quatre- 
foil.  The  walls  are  thick  and  doorways  often  deeply 
recessed  ;  the  windows  long  and  narrow,  single,  or  in 
groups  of  two,  three,  five,  or  seven.  The  mouldings  are 
sometimes  very  rich.  The  pillars  are  often  plain  in 
country  churches,  and  in  richer  buildings  beautifully  clus- 
tered— i.e.  small  columns  are  massed  round  a  central  one. 
The  capitals,  or  heads  of  pillars,  have  simple  but  effective 
mouldings,  sometimes  with  fohage  of  a  very  conventional 
character.* 

"  Buttresses  are  large.  Flj-ing  buttresses  now  appear, 
i.e.  buttresses  from  the  outer  wall  arched  over  to  the  nave, 
to  counteract  the  thrust  of  the  stone-vaulted  ceihngs  which 
now  began  to  prevail.  These  are  often  most  beautiful, 
and  give  great  elegance  as  well  as  strength  to  a  building. 

"  A  most  characteristic  ornament  is  a  very  beautiful  one, 
called  dog-tooth,  which  is  really  a  star-flower  of  four  leaves, 
constantly  repeated  in  the  hollow  of  a  deeply-cut  moulding. 
A  fine  early  specimen  of  this  style  is  Lincoln  Cathedral 

•  The  term  "  Conventional"  is  applied  to  the  mode  of  treating  ornamental 
forms,  commonly  by  following  the  normal  type  of  nature — e.g.  in  a  leaf  or 
flower,  but  in  a  slilT,  formal  way,  and  is  the  opposite  of  naturalistic  treatment 


DECORATED. 


a  fine  late  one,  the  choir  and  transepts  of  Westminster 
Abbey. 

"  The  Decorated,  or  Middle  Pointed,  followed  the  Early 
English  towards  the  close  of  the  thirteenth  century.  In 
it  we  see  the  perfection  of  Gotliic  architecture,  not  in 
respect  of  massiveness,  eleijance,  and  dignity  in  proportion, 
depth,  and  richness  of  moulding,  or  of  general  impressive- 
ness,  but  of  ornamental  detail  in  all  its  wealth  and  purity. 
The  title  '  Decorated '  was  given  to  signify  that  in  it 
ornament  became  more  essentially  a  part  of  the  style. 
The  windows  form  one  of  its  most  characteristic  features  ; 
the  earliest  forms  are  the  best  and  purest :  the  window  heads 
are  filled  with  tracery  of  regular  geometric  forms.  Later 
in  the  style  these  ran  off  into  flowing,  wavy  lines,  like  the 
beautiful  windows  in  Norwich  Cathedral.  The  carving 
followed  more  closely  the  forms  of  natural  foliage,  in  a 
luxuriant  fulness  which  afterwards  degenerated  into  a  thin, 
wiry  exuberance.  Buttresses  increased  in  number  and 
size.  Niches,  with  canopies  containing  sculptured  figures, 
buttresses  with  pinnacles  and  crockets,  were  introduced. 
The  pillars  are  often  moulded  or  clustered,  with  shafts 
attached—  /.f.  cut  in  the  solid  stone,  instead  of  detached 
as  in  the  Early  English.  Mouldings  very  rich  and  fine, 
but  often  very  simple  and  massive.  One  characteristic 
ornament  is  called  the  ball-flowcr.  A  fine  early  specimen 
of  this  style  is  the  Chapter-house  at  Hereford  ;  a  ..iie  late 
one,  the  Tomb  of  (2ueen  Philippa  at  Westminster. 

"  The  Pe7-pcndicular,  or  Third  Pointed,  arose  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  fourteenth  century.  Its  name  is  derived 
from  the  strikingly  vertical  arrangement  of  the  tracery. 
The  mouldings  grew  poor,  by  an  exaggeration  of  the 
hollow,  and  ornament  overcrowded.  A  leading  feature  is 
an  arched  doorway  under  a  square  head.  Transoms 
are  used  in  windows  ;  i.e.  horizontal  bars  of  stone  crossing 


230  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


the  muUions.  Panelling  is  much  used.  The  roofs  are 
often  open  and  very  elaborate,  with  tracery  and  carved 
angels.  Westminster  Hall  is  a  fine  instance  of  such  a 
roof  in  a  secular  building.  The  cloisters  of  Gloucester 
Cathedral  and  the  choir  at  York  are  excellent  instances  of 
Perpendicular  work,  but  the  first  and  finest  are  the  works 
of  William  of  Wykeham  at  Winchester,  and  at  New 
College,  Oxford." 

"  Now,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  when  Joan  had  read  the  notes, 
"  put  those  away  for  future  reference,  and  come  with  me  ; 
I  will  point  out  to  you  instances  of  these  architectural 
features  of  w  hich  I  have  made  alphabetical  memoranda." 

It  will  be  well  to  set  down  the  explanations  without  the 
conversations  whicli  occasionally  took  place. 

^Usle  or  Aile  (from  the  Latin  or  French  for  a  wing). — 
A  passage  on  either  side  of  the  nave  or  chancel  of  a 
church,  running  parallel  to  it  and  separated  from  it  by  an 
arcade.  The  nave  has  been  sometimes  incorrectly  called 
an  aisle,  from  the  alley  or  passage  (French,  allce)  along 
the  centre.  In  this  sense  it  has  been  used  by  Keble, 
following  other  writers  in  this  respect  :— 

*'  Three  sulcmn  aisles  approach  the  shriiie. 
Yet  all  are  one." 

Abncry,  or  Aumbry. — A  place  for  alms,  a  cupboard  in 
which  church  treasures  were  locked  ;  hence  also  called  a 
locker. 

Altars  (f  rom  Latin,  alta  ara,  high  altar)  were  sometimes 
built  of  wood  for  the  first  four  or  five  centuries,  but  in  509 
they  were  ordered  to  be  always  of  stone. 

Amlwn  (from  Greek,  a/iadaincin,  to  ascend). — An  erec- 
tion in  a  Greek  church,  serving  on  one  side  for  a  pulpit 
and  on  the  other  for  a  reading-desk ;  hence  some  have 
dcri\  ed  it  from  the  Latin  aiiiio,  both. 

A/isc:  -The  east  end  of  a  church  w  hen  of  a  rounded  or 


GLOSSARY. 


231 


polygonal  {i.e.  many-sided)  form.  The  idea  came  from 
the  Roman  basilicas  or  judgnietit-halls  ;  these  were  often 
turned  into  Christian  churches.  In  their  apse  the  judges 
sat ;  in  the  church,  the  Bishop  and  clergy ;  and  in  the 
early  ages  of  the  Church  these  were  used  for  synods  and 
courts  of  spiritual  judicature. 

Arcade. — A  series  or  row  of  arches  with  pillars  between 
them. 

Ashlar. — Dressed  or  hewn  facing  of  stone  used  in 
building,  so  called  to  distinguish  it  from  rough  unhewn 
stone. 

Bapiislcry. — Part  of  a  church,  or  a  separate  building, 
where  baptisms  are  performed.  There  is  a  separate 
baptistery  to  Canterbury  Cathedral. 

Biirj^r. — The  edge  of  a  gable  ;  hence  a  barge-board  is 
a  plain  or  ornamental  finish  of  wood  over  the  gable  of  a 
roof,  often  seen  on  fine  old  houses. 

>  Belfry. — The  upper  stage  of  a  tower  containing  bells  ; 
the  term  is  sometimes  used  for  the  bell-tower  itself 

Boss. — A  plain  or  ornamental  block  of  wood  or  stone 
used  as  a  finish  where  the  ribs  of  the  roof  or  ceiling  in- 
tersect. 

Brasses. — Monumental  plates  of  metal,  whether  in  the 
form  of  a  cross  or  of  an  effigy  of  the  deceased,  let  into 
the  surface  of  stone  slabs  of  pavement.  Many  persons 
collect  rubljings  of  brasses  made  by  heel-ball  on  unsized 
paper,  such  as  is  used  under  wall-paper.  When  rubbed 
in  one  direction  only,  the  figure  and  inscription  often  come 
out  perfect. 

Broach. — The  part  where  the  spire  "  breal<s  off"  from 
the  tower. 

Biiih'css. — A  projection  from  a  wall  to  add  strength. 
Campanile  (Italian). — A  bell-towcr  in  Italy;  these  are 
generally  separated  from  the  body  of  the  church  or 


232  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


cathedral ;  a  noted  specimen  is  Giotto's  leaning  tower  at 
Pisa. 

Canopy. — An  ornamental  finish  over  a  niche  or  stall,  &c. 
Capital. — The  carved  or  moulded  finish  at  the  top  of  a 
column. 

Caryatides. — Statues  of  women  used  in  classical  archi- 
tecture in  lieu  of  columns  to  uphold  an  entablature  and 
cornice.* 

Cathedral. — A  church  which  contains  the  cathedra  or 
seat  of  a  Bishop. 

Cemetery. — A  sleeping-place  ;  i.e.  a  burial-ground. 

Chalice. — The  cup  used  for  wine  in  the  Eucharist. 

Chancel-screen. — An  open  screen  dividing  the  chancel 
from  the  nave. 

Chantry- chapel,  or  simply  Chantry  (from  French, 
chanter,  to  sing). — A  chapel  built  over  a  tomb,  where 
masses  were  sung  for  the  departed.  • 

Chapter-house. — The  assembling -place  for  the  Dean 
and  Chapter  of  a  Cathedral. 

Choir. — That  part  of  the  chancel  or  east  end  of  a 
church  used  by  the  choristers  and  clergy  where  matins 
and  evensong  are  said  or  sung. 

Clear-story,  or  Clerestory. — The  story  or  space  contain- 
ing the  windows  in  a  church  above  an  arcade  or  over  a 
triforium. 

Cloister. — A  covered  walk  around  a  square  or  quad- 
rangle in  a  monastic  or  collegiate  or  cathedral  building, 
used  formerly  for  meditation. 

Corona. — A  pendant  circlet  for  holding  candles  or  lights. 

Credence. — The  side-table  on  which  the  bread  and  wine 
are  placed  before  consecration. 

•  This  being  a  term  of  classical  architecture,  there  was  of  course  no  in- 
stance in  the  cathedral ;  but  it  was  added,  as  a  name  often  to  be  found  in 


GLOSSARY. 


233 


Crockets  (French,  croc,  a  hook). — Leaves  and  other 
ornaments  running  up  spires,  gables,  &c. 

Cry  pi  (Greek,  krnpto,  to  conceal). — underground 
vault. 

Cusps.  —  Projecting  ornamented  points  in  elaborate 
Gothic  tracery  of  arches,  &c. 

Dais. — A  raised  space  for  seats  of  honour  at  the  upper 
end  of  a  hall. 

Diaper-work. — Flat  carved  ornament  of  a  formal  kind 
to  fill  up  spaces  on  walls,  &c. 

Diptych. — A  cabinet  or  other  small  object  having  two 
parts  which  fold  together. 

Dormer. — A  window  in  a  little  gable  on  a  sloping  roof. 

Dormitory. — A  sleeping-room. 

Dossal. — See  "  Reredos." 

Dripstone. — A  projecting  moulding  over  doors,  &c.,  to 
let  the  rain  drip  off. 

Faldstool  (folding-stool). — A  handsome  portable  seat* 
for  prayer  for  royal  personages  or  for  clergy  in  the  sanc- 
tuary. It  was  sometimes  carried  for  a  Bishop  when 
preaching  away  from  his  own  cathedral.  The  word  is 
not  correctly  applied  to  a  litany  stool. 

Fan-traccry.  —  Radiating  panelled  tracery  in  vaulted 
ceilings  or  niches,  spreading  out  like  a  fan  or  succession 
of  fans,  from  the  tojis  of  the  shafts  or  columns. 

Fillet.  — h  small  flat  band  between  mouldings,  or  on 
the  edge  of  a  mullion. 

Finial.  —  K  bunch  of  foilage  finishing  a  pinnacle, 
canopy,  bcnrh-cnd,  &c. 

Flamboyant  (from  French  flambcati,  a  torch).  —  The 
style  of  Gothic  architecture  contemporary  in  France  with 
our  Perpendicular,  so  called  because  the  ornament  and 
window  tracery  ran  into  flowing,  flame-like  designs.  In 

^  .itf  I'AKKliK's  Glossary  of  Arc/utccturc. 


234  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


English  architecture  the  term  is  applied  to  the  latest 
phase  of  the  Decorated,  immediately  preceding  or  con- 
temporaneous with  the  Perpendicular. 

Font  (Latin,  fans,  a  spring). — The  vessel  containing 
the  consecrated  water  for  Baptism.  Ancient  fonts  were 
always  made  large  enough  to  receive  the  entire  body  of  a 
child. 

Frith-stool,  or  Freed-stool. — A  stone  chair  still  found  in 
some  old  churches,  anciently  the  last  and  most  sacred 
refuge  for  those  claiming  privilege  of  sanctuar)'. 

Gable. — The  upper  part  of  the  wall  formed  by  the  ter- 
mination of  the  roof. 

Galilee. — A  building  like  a  porch,  or  like  the  body  of  a 
church,  added  on  externally  to  the  west  end  of  a  cathe- 
dral, commonly  supposed  to  be  for  the  purposes  of  a 
chapel,  or  else  for  the  use  of  catechumens  and  of  peni- 
tents, corresponding  with  the  narthex  of  a  Greek  church. 
But  it  would  appear  from  a  paper  read  by  one  of  the 
Fellows,  Mr.  W.  White,  before  the  Society  of  Antiquaries, 
that,  in  the  case  of  Durham  at  all  events,  the  Galilee  was 
built  for  the  Bishop's  Consistory  Court. 

Gallery.  * — A  modern  wooden  erection  for  the  execution 
of  Tate  and  Brady,  or  for  increasing  the  accommodation 
for  "hearing"  without  reference  to  "worship."  In 
mediaeval  times  a  gallery  was  sometimes  erected  at  the 
west  end  of  a  castle  chapel  for  the  use  of  the  female 
community  in  the  garrison,  approached  from  their  own 
apartments  upstairs.  The  triforiumt  of  a  cathedral 
church  was  also  sometimes  used  as  a  gallery  for  seeing 
processions  or  for  putting  out  embroidered  hangings. 
Another  kind  called  the  rood-loft  will  be  spoken  of  later. 
Gargoyle,  or  gurgoyle. — A  projecting  spout  of  stone,  to 

*  The  authoress  is  not  responsible  for  this  somewhat  severe  definition, 
t  For  triforium  see  Willis's  Canterbury  Catliedral,  pp.  43-4q  :  184=;. 


GLOSSARY. 


235 


carry  off  water  from  the  gutter  of  a  roof ;  often  in  Gothic 
architecture  made  in  quaint  or  picturesque  designs, 
grotesque  faces,  queer  animals,  spouting  the  water  from 
their  mouths,  &c. 

Groined  Ceilings. — Those  fornied  by  the  intersection  of 
several  vaults. 

Hagioscope. — See  "Squint." 

Hip-knob. — An  ornamental  finial  on  a  gable. 

Jamb  (French,  jainbe,  leg). — The  side  of  the  opening 
of  a  window,  door,  chimney,  &c. 

Jiibe. — The  rood-loft  {see  "  Rood-loft"),  from  the  words 
"  'Jiibe,  Do/nine,  be/iei/icere"  "  Sir,  bid  a  blessing,"  pro- 
nounced sometimes  from  this  gallery  in  the  unreformed 
church. 

Keystone. — The  central  stone  at  the  top  of  an  arch  ; 
the  last  placed  in  the  arch.  In  Italian  and  very  late  work 
this  is  sometimes  ornamented  by  being  made  larger  than 
the  oilier  voussoirs,  and  projecting. 

Lady  Chapel. — A  chapel  dedicated  to  the  Blessed 
Virgin.  There  are  such  in  almost  all  large  churches.  It 
is  generally  at  the  extreme  east  end,  behind  the  H  igh  Altar. 

Lantei-n. — A  tow  er  lighted  by  windows,  and  open  to  the 
body  of  the  church  beneath  ;  so  that  from  the  body  of  the 
church,  one  can  look  up  into  the  tower. 

Lavatory. — A  cistern  or  Isasin  to  wash  in. 

Lectern,  or  I^ettern.—i\  moveable  stand  to  hold  the 
Bible,  from  which  the  Icbsons  arc  read.  Often  in  the 
symbolic  foiin  of  an  e.igle. 

Lii/i-g<ite  (An,^lu-Sa\oii,  Lic/i,  a  corpse). — A  gale  willi 
a  sni.iU  roof  ovei'  it  at  the  entrance  of  churcliyards,  and 
so  called  bccaubc  the  coffin  lested  there. 

Litany-stool.— 1\  portable  kneeling-desk  at  the  entrance 
of  a  choir,  whence  the  Litany  is  read. 

[.oeker.—Sec  Almery." 


236  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


Lo/t.—A  gallery. 

Machicolations.— kind  of  battlement  arranged  for 
casting  down  missiles  on  assailants. 

Mi7ister.~K  church  to  which  a  monastery  has  been 
attached. 

Miscrere.~S&zXs  on  hinges  in  the  staUs  of  churches, 
which  are  made  so  that  when  turned  up,  in  case  the 
occupant  should  nod  as  he  sits  bolt  upright,  in  a  half- 
standing  position,  the  seat  falls  down  and  turns  him  off. 
They  were  to  serve  for  a  slight  rest  to  those  who  had  to 
take  part  in  the  recital  of  the  long  offices,  psalms,  &c. 
They  are  generally  very  quaintly  and  richly  carved. 

Nave  (Latin,  Navis,  a  ship).  — The  main  body  of  a 
church  for  the  use  of  the  people.  The  pulpit  always 
stands  on  the  nave  towards  the  east  end,  and  the  font  at 
the  west  end  near  the  main  entrance. 

Ncwal,  or  AVti', //.— The  post  or  pillar  round  which  a 
spiral  staircase  turns. 

Nic/ic.—A.  recess  in  a  wall  for  a  statue. 

Ogee.—i:hii  outline  of  an  arch,  or  the  section  of  a 
moulding,  formed  by  two  curx  es  re\  ersed. 

Pah'u.—A  small  salver  used  for  containing  the  Eu- 
charistic  bread. 

Pax.— A  metal  tablet  bearing  a  Christian  symbol, 
kissed  by  Romanists  in  the  service  of  the  Mass.  It  was 
introduced  to  avoid  the  confusion  occasioned  by  the  "kiss 
of  peace." 

Pews.— mgh  pews  were  introduced  by  the  Puritans 
after  the  Reformation,  to  hide  their  disobedience  to  the 
command  to  kneel  and  to  show  their  disregard  of  all  ideas 
of  "worship." 

Piscina.— A  little  drain  or  sink,  often  made  ornamental, 
and  placed  near  the  altar,  to  carry  off  the  water  in  which 
the  priest  washed  his  hands  before  administering  the 


GLOSSARY. 


237 


Communion,  and  also  that  in  which  the  chalice  was 
rinsed.  Sometimes  there  are  two  provided  for  the  two 
purposes  separate])'. 

Polychrome. — Varied  colouring  used  for  ornamenting 
or  furnishing  walls,  &c.  All  or  nearly  all  mediaeval 
buildings  were  ornamented  in  polychrome. 

Poppy-head. — A  finial  on  the  end  of  a  church  seat. 

Presbytery. — Properly  the  part  of  the  apse  of  a  chancel 
containing  the  seats  where  the  priests  or  presbyters  sat 
round  on  either  side  of  the  Bishop's  throne,  which  was  in 
the  centre  against  the  east  wall,  and  hence  that  part  of 
the  choir  in  which  the  altar  stands.  Sometimes  used  for 
the  whole  choir. 

Prie-dieu. — A  high-backed  chair  made  for  kneeling 
on. 

Pyx. — The  ornamented  box  in  which  the  Host  or 
consecrated  wafer  is  kept  in  Roman  churches. 

Quadrangle. — A  square  surrounded  by  buildings,  as  in 
colleges. 

Quarrel,  quarry  (French,  enrri',  a  square). — A  square 
stone  or  brick ;  a  small  square  or  diamond-shaped  pane 
of  glass  ;  a  small  hole  in  the  tracery  of  a  window. 

Refectory. — A  dining-hall. 

Reredos*  (French,  arrilre  dos,  behind  back). — An 
ornamental  backing  to  the  Allar.  If  carved  work  or 
painting  cannot  be  had,  this  may  be  an  embroidered  or 
plain  hanging  of  cloth,  then  called  a  dossal. 

Retable. — The  shelf  behind  the  Altar,  often  wrongly 
called  a  super-altar. 

Rood. — A  large  crucifix  over  the  chancel  screen. 

Rood-loft— gallery  on  the  top  of  the  chancel  screen 
carrj-ing  the  rood;  from  hence  the  Epistle  and  Gospel 
formerly  were  re;  .. 

"  Pronuuiicud  Reardoss. 


238  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


Rose-windo'w. — A  round  window.  There  are  fine  speci- 
mens in  the  Early  English  and  Decorated  styles. 

Sacristy,  or  sacrarium.  — A  vestry. 

Sanctuary. — The  eastern  portion  of  the  chancel  set 
apart  for  the  celebration  of  the  Holy  Communion. 

Sedilia. — Seats  on  the  south  side  of  the  choir,  near  the 
Altar,  for  the  priests  assisting  in  the  celebration.  They 
are  generally  like  a  series  of  niches  in  wood  or  stone. 

Shaft. — That  part  of  a  pillar  which  comes  between 
capital  and  base. 

Shingks. — Tiles  of  wood  for  covering  spires,  &c. 

Shrine. — A  sacred  place  ;  a  tomb,  or  receptacle  for 
sacred  rehcs. 

Spandrel. — The  space  of  plain  wall  between  two  arches, 
or  between  an  arch  and  the  square  moulding  round  it. 

Spires. — Stunted  pyramidal  spires  were  used  late  in 
the  Norman  style  ;  they  became  more  elegant  in  the  later 
styles.  Salisbury  is  the  great  example  of  an  English 
spire. 

Sqiii7it,  or  hagioscope  (Greek,  view  of  holy  things). — 
An  oblique  opening  in  a  church  wall,  to  allow  people  in  a 
transept  or  aisle  to  see  the  Elevation  of  the  Host  in  the 
unreformed  church. 

Stalls. — Fixed  seats  for  the  clergy  and  choristers,  in 
the  choir. 

Steeple. — A  tower  with  its  spire  or  lantern  or  roof. 

Stoup. — A  receptacle  for  holy  water. 

Super-altar. — A  portable  slab,  placed  formerly  on  the 
altar  to  consecrate  upon.    See  "  Retable." 

Tabernacle-work. — The  highly-ornamented  «  ork  of  late 
date  on  canopies.  The  tabernacle  is  also  the  receptacle 
for  the  Host. 

Thurible. — A  vase-shaped  censer,  with  a  perforated  lid 

to  let  the  incense-fumes  escape. 


GLOSSARY. 


Tower. — That  part  of  a  steeple  below  the  spire. 

Tracery. — The  ornamental  stonework  in  the  upper  part 
of  Gothic  windows. 

Transept. — A  body  or  aisle  set  on  at  right  angles  to  the 
nave  or  chancel.  A  cruciform  church  has  two  transepts, 
north  and  south,  opposite  each  other. 

Triforium  {See  also  "  Gallery  "). — The  space  between 
the  arcade  and  the  clerestory  of  cathedral  churches.  It 
is  formed  over  the  vaulting  or  beneath  the  roof  of  the 
aisle,  with  arches  opening  out  below  the  clerestory. 

Triptych. — A  folding  picture  framed,  sometimes  gabled 
and  highly  ornamented ;  the  wings  being  just  half  the 
width  of  the  centre,  and  folding  together  over  it  so  as  to 
lock  up.  Some  of  the  most  beautiful  and  devotional  of 
mediaeval  pictures  are  in  triptychs. 

Tudor  Style. — A  debased  work,  succeeding  to  the 
Perpendicular  period,  retaining  some  of  its  features,  but 
distinguished  chiefly  by  its  depressed  four-centred  arches. 

Turret.— h.  small  tower  or  large  pinnacle. 

Vane,  or  Fane. — A  small  metal  flag  or  other  device  at 
the  top  of  a  building  for  indicating  the  direction  of  the 
wind.  When  in  the  form  of  a  cock  it  is  called  a  weather- 
cock. 

Visd. — A  spiral  staircase  round  a  pillar. 

Voiissoir. — The  wedge-shaped  or  radiated  stones  of 
which  an  arch  is  formed.  The  keystone  is  the  top  and 
central  one. 

Here  ended  the  little  glossary,  and  as  they  left  the 
cathedral  Joan  said,  looking  about  her  with  satisfaction, 
"  I  can  take  much  more  interest  in  the  dear  old  cathedral 
now  !   Why,  every  bit  of  it  has  a  history  and  a  meaning." 

She  found  out,  unaided,  to  her  great  delight,  that  the 
west  front  was  Perpendicular,  thai  the  tower  was  Norman, 
that  some  of  the  buttresses  were  flying  buttresses,  and 


240  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


that  the  cloisters  were  Decorated.  All  this  proved,  as 
Mrs.  Askell  explained,  in  how  many  ages,  by  the  exertions 
of  different  Bishops,  the  edifice  had  been  buiit.  As  the 
two  made  a  little  roundabout  return  through  the  low  fields, 
with  their  winding  river  and  bushy  fallows  gleaming  and 
glowing  in  the  sunset  light,  they  tallced  of  the  different 
English  cathedrals. 

"  How  many  are  there  ?" 

"Twenty-nine,*  if  we  include  the  four  Welsh  cathedrals." 
"  Which  is  the  largest  ?" 

"The  longest  of  all  ecclesiastical  edifices  in  England 
is  St.  Alban's  Abbey  ;  next  come  Ely  Cathedral,  560  feet 
long  ;  Canterbury,  525  ;  and  Winchester,  520." 

"Which  is  the  finest.?" 

"  'Ah  !  there,  my  friend,  you  ha\e  me  fast !'  The  stjles 
of  beauty  are  so  various.  York  is  generally  considered 
to  bear  the  palm,  but  Lincoln  and  Wells  are  not  much,  if 
at  all,  behind.  There  is  a  harmony  in  York  which  the 
others  miss ;  but  Lincoln  is  more  noble,  and  its  choir 
(called  the  angel-choir,  from  figures  of  angels  in  high 
relief  upon  the  spandrels)  is  so  perfect  in  proportion  and 
in  eveiy  other  beauty,  that  it  always  brings  tears  to  my 
eyes  and  a  sense  of  great  satisfaction  to  my  mind.t  And 
as  for  Wells,  though  York  has  been  called  the  Rose  of 
Cathedrals,  and  bears  an  inscription  to  that  effect  in  its 
Chapter-house,  Wells  always  struck  me  as  the  very  white 
rose  of  them  all.  The  calm  old-world  picturesque  citj', 
and  the  neighbouring  romantic  scener)-  of  Ebor  and 
Cheddar,  also  lend  associations  to  the  cathedral.  And  its 
west  front  at  least .  seems  to  me  certainly  unrivalled. 
There  is  in  the  Cathedral  of  Wells  an  antique  chair 

*  See  List  in  Appendix. 

t  Canterbury  is  also  celebrated  for  the  wonderful  elevation  of  the  choir 
above  the  nave  by  several  flights  of  steps. 


SALISBURY. 


241 


known  as  the  Cilastonbury  chair,  originally  carved  by  a 
monk  for  the  Prior  of  Glastonbury.  You  may  often  meet 
with  imitations  of  it  in  halls,  libraries,  &c." 

"I  know!  Canon  Gibson  has  one.  It  has  ^ Sit  Lans 
Deo'  carved  on  one  of  the  anns,  and  the  Canon  told  me 
that  meant, '  Praise  be  to  God.'" 

"  The  most  beautiful  cathedral  externally  is  undoubtedly 
Salisbury.  The  spire  seems  to  gather  up  to  itself  the 
minor  points  of  pinnacle  and  ornament,  like  all  pure 
aspirations  striving  upward  to  the  height  of  Christ's 
holiness.  I  long  to  take  you  to  Salisbury,  for  besides  the 
cathedral  there  are  two  striking  churches  close  by,  at 
Wilton  and  Bcmerton.  The  interior  of  Salisbury  is  plain, 
being  in  the  Early  English  style,  and  seems  cold  from  a 
want  of  colour  in  wall  and  window,  which  I  hope  may  be 
supplied,  as  the  building  is  now  undergoing  costly  re- 
storation. Bemerton,  a  tiny  church,  not  capable  of  holding 
more  than  forty  people,  is  made  holy  by  the  memory  of 
George  Herbert,  who  lived  and  died  there  (1633).  A 
medlar-tree  planted  by  him,  and  braced  up  by  metal  to 
prevent  it  splitting  asunder  with  age,  exists  in  the  garden 
of  the  parsonage  close  by.  Farther  on  is  the  wonderful 
Church  of  Wilton,  built  by  Lord  Herbert  (who  lived 
between  18 10  and  1861),  and  rich  with  every  sort  of 
ecclesiastical  treasure— glass,  wood,  carving,  and  inlaid 
work.  It  is  not  a  true  English  church,  however,  but  is 
rather  of  the  Lombardic  or  North  Italian  type,  but  in  its 
way  it  is  unique.  Wilton  has  always  been  one  of  my  pretty 
dreams.    It  seems  to  me  a  sort  of  ideal  village." 

"  You  said  that  church-building  ceased  after  the  Refor- 
mation ;  but  are  not  fine  churches  built  now?" 

"Very  fine  ones.  The  Renaissance  style,  or  that  of 
Wren  and  his  contemporaries,  introduced  at  a  period 
when  Church  teaching  was  at  its  lowest  ebb,  and  when 
R 


242 


CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


provision  for  preaching  was  considered  the  one  thing 
needful,  presented  no  single  redeeming  feature  to  com- 
mend it  to  the  sympathies  of  Churchmen.  All  that  can 
be  said  in  its  defence  is  that  it  was  a  well-intentioned 
effort  towards  a  revival  of  architecture,  and  when  it  had 
degenerated  to  such  odious  specimens  as  abound  in  the 
parish  of  Marylebone,  for  instance,  men  felt  that  a  change 
must  come.  And  so  a  few  began  to  feel  feebly  after 
Gothic  art,  and  commenced  some  thirty  years  ago  with  a 
weak  sort  of  revival  of  the  Early  English.  And  now 
matters  have  so  much  improved  that  we  have  reached  the 
splendours  of  the  church  built  by  Mr.  Ackroyd  at  Halifax, 
of  All  Saints'  Margaret  Street,  St.  Alban's  Holbom,  and 
others,  some  of  which,  I  hope,  you  will  see  ere  long." 

"  Who  are  the  best  architects  now  ? " 

"  Street,  Scott,  Buttertield,  and  White  are  the  most 
famous,  but  many  good  local  architects  are  now  rising  up, 
and  one  church  in  particular  (All  Saints',  at  Houghton, 
near  Bradford,  in  Yorkshire),  built  by  local  architects, 
yields  to  very  few  in  the  beauty  of  its  proportions." 

"  Will  you  now  tell  me  the  difterence  between  a  cathe- 
dral, a  monastery,  an  abbey,  and  a  priory  ?  They  are  all 
words  I  have  met  with,  and  I  have  long  wanted  to  ask 
you  to  tell  mc  the  distinction  between  them." 

"  A  cathedral,  you  know  already,  is  a  church  containing 
a  cathedra,  or  Bishop's  chair ;  some  cathedrals  were 
served  by  monks,  but  others,  such  as  Durham,  Ely,  and 
Westminster,  were  founded  upon  the  monastic  endowments. 
Commonly,  however,  cathedrals  had  no  connection  with 
monastic  orders,  but  \\  ere  served  by  secular  officers  (or 
clergy  not  of  regular  orders).  A  monasteiy  is  a  general 
term  for  any  religious  house,  or,  more  strictly  speaking, 
a  house  for  monks.  A  convent  was  a  home  for  either 
monks  or  nuns.    Nunnery  tells  its  own  tale  ;  so  does 


PRIORIES. 


243 


friary.  An  abbey  was  a  monastery  governed  by  an  abbot ; 
a  priory,  one  governed  by  a  prior,  and  generally  put  in 
subjection  to  an  abbey.  Sometimes  a  priory  in  England 
was  a  cell  or  branch  of  a  foreign  abbey,  as  St.  Michael's, 
standing  out  so  beautifully  on  the  coast  of  Cornwall,  was 
a  priory  of  St  Michael's  Abbey  on  the  coast  of  Brittany." 

Here  they  stopped  to  admire  the  glory  of  the  sunset. 

"How  happy  it  makes  one  feel,"  said  Joan  ;  "and  I 
even  fancy  that  admiring  such  sights  makes  one  for  the 
time  more  peaceful  and  even  better." 

"  It  does,"  said  Mrs.  Askell,  "  and  so  we  draw  from 
nature  an  answer  to  those  who  ask,  concerning  our  beautiful 
churches,  '  To  what  purpose  was  this  waste  ? '  Where 
means  are  wanting  to  provide  such  iDeauty,  men  may 
indeed  well  worship  in  the  plainest  room.  But  if  we  can, 
let  us  minister  to  our  minds'  enjoyment  in  the  aspect  of 
God's  house.  I  have  heard  it  said,  '  While  so  many  are 
starving,  why  spend  on  outside  show  ?'" 

"  I  have  heard  it,  too.    And  what  should  you  say?" 

"  I  should  repeat  what  I  heard  said  once  in  such  a  case, 
that  '  God  has  given  men  not  only  bodies  to  be  fed  and 
clothed,  but  also  minds  to  be  raised  and  souls  to  be 
trained  ;  and  as  the  liody  is  the  lowest  of  these,  we  must 
not  liclp  tliat  :ih)nc  and  neglect  tlie  hunger  of  the  mind.' 
As  >uu  feel  better  in  watching  llie  stinset,  so  you  feel  in 
hearing  a  sweet  service  in  a  beautiful  church  ;  do  you  not  ?" 

"  I  do,  indeed.  Did  not  that  answer  convince  the 
person  spoken  to?" 

"I  think  not,"  answered  Mrs.  Askell,  with  a  smile. 
"  I  almost  doubt  whether  reason  ever  convinced  any  one 
who  did  not  wish  to  be  convinced." 


244  CHURCH  ARCHITECTURE. 


APPENDIX. 

ENGLISH  CATHEDRALS. 


I. 

Durham. 

16. 

Gloucester  (  Under  one 

2. 

Carlisle. 

17. 

Bristol       (  Bishop. 

3- 

Ripon. 

18. 

LlandafT  (Welsh). 

4- 

York  (Archbishopric). 

19- 

St.  David's  (Welsh). 

S- 

Manchester. 

20. 

Bath     (     Under  one 

6. 

Chester. 

21. 

WeUs  \  Bishop. 

7- 

St.  Asaph  (Welsh). 

22. 

Hereford. 

8. 

Bangor  (Welsh). 

23. 

Exeter. 

9- 

Lichfield. 

24- 

Salisbury. 

lO. 

Lincoln. 

25- 

Winton. 

II. 

Peterborough. 

26. 

Chichester. 

12. 

Ely. 

27. 

Canterbury  (Archbishop- 

13- 

Norwich. 

ric). 

14. 

Oxford. 

28. 

Rochester. 

'5- 

WorccslL-r. 

29. 

London. 

The  Bishop  of  Sodor  and  Man  has  no  cathedraL 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


**  Docirifie  ami  life^  colours  and  lighty  in  one 
ly/un  they  cotnbine  and  mingle ^  bring 
A  strong  regard  ami  awe." 


G.  Herbert. 


**  Storied  windowsy  richly  digkt. 
Casting  a  dim  religi^ms  ligltt." 


Milton,  "//  Penseroso.** 


"  Think  •mheti  the  bells  do  chime, 
'Tis  Angels*  Music** 


G.  Herbert. 


'  Ever  the  satne^  yet  ever  new. 

Changed  and  yet  tnte. 
Like  the  pure  /leaven^s  unfailing  blue, 

IVhich  varies  on  from  liour  to  hour. 
Vet  of  the  same  high  Love  and  Power 

Tells  alway: — sueh  may  seem 
Through  li/e^  or  waking  or  in  dream, 

Tite  eciioing  bells  tltat  gave 
Our  child/iood  welcome  to  tiie  healing  wave  ; 
Such  the  remembered  word,  so  mii^hiy  t/ten  to  save.** 


"A  UNT,"  said  Joan,  soon  after  the  last  lesson,  "you 
have  told  me  all  about  the  stones  of  the  cathedral, 
but  there  are  some  ver>^  pretty  things  you  have  not  said 
a  word  about." 

"  What  are  they,  Joan  ?" 
"  The  windows." 

"  Well,  I  have  some  notes  on  windows,  and  you  shall 
have  the  benefit  of  them  to-day,  if  you  like." 


KsDLE,  **  Lyra  Innocentium*' 


246 


WINDOIVS  AND  BELLS. 


"Thank  you  ;  I  should  like  it  very  much." 
"Which  of  the  windows  did  you  like  the  best?" 
"  Not  that  one  that  you  pointed  out  as  so  beautiful, 
aunt,  I  am  sorry  to  say." 
"  Why  so  ?" 

"  Because  the  figures  were  so  oddly  drawn,  and  the 
colours  were  quite  unnatural.  I  preferred  one  of  the  side 
windows,  which  looks  almost  like  a  picture." 

"  And  that  is  about  the  worst  in  all  the  place." 

"Then  please  to  explain,  and  make  me  admire  the 
right  one,  auntie  ;  I  know  I  am  very  stupid  about  such 
things." 

"  Not  stupid,  dear.  Your  remark  is  very  natural,  and 
similar  remarks  have  been  made  by  many  who  have  had 
better  chances  of  experience  than  you.  Let  me  explain, 
first  of  all,  that  that  window  is  beautiful,  not  because  of, 
but  in  spite  of,  the  odd  drawing  which  struck  you  so  much. 
The  unmistakable  stor)-  which  it  represents,  the  sti-ongly 
marked  lines,  the  depth  and  brilliancy  of  the  colours,  its 
freedom  from  all  gaudiucss  in  its  tones,  the  quietness  of 
the  pale-tinted  white  glass  which  forms  the  background, 
and  its  grand  harmony,  can  hardly  be  imitated,  much  less 
excelled,  in  these  days  ;  whilst  the  window  you  so  much 
admire  is  so  obtrusive  as  to  attract  attention  to  itself  by 
its  glare,  and  it  aims  at  pictorial  finish  and  treatment 
apart,  instead  of  being  content  to  hold  its  proper  subor- 
dinate position  in  the  general  interior  effect  of  the  building. 
The  one  adds  to  the  beauty  of  the  architecture,  the  other 
takes  from  it." 

"  I  begin  to  see  now  what  you  mean,  that  a  stained  glass 
window  ought  not  to  be  like  a  transparency  painting," 
said  Joan. 

"  Yes,  that  is  just  what  I  mean.  The  first  object  of  a 
window  is  to  let  in  li-ht,  and  though  the  dimmed  light  of 


'TRANSLUCENCE. 


247 


a  coloured  window  harmonizes  best  with  the  solemnity  of 
God's  house,  all  must  agree  that  to  make  the  windows 
opaque  would  be  the  least  desirable  thing." 

"  Of  course  ;  it  would  make  the  place  quite  dark." 

"  Certainly.  And  to  destroy  the  chemical  composition 
of  the  light  is  productive  of  heaviness  and  gloom  rather 
than  of  that  cheerfulness  which  brilliant  colour  is  supposed 
to  give.  The  most  offensive  form  in  which  this  is  exhibited 
is  that  process  called  diaphanie,  which  your  cousin  Rachael 
was  manufacturing  for  her  hall  window,  and  which  I  hope 
nothing  will  ever  induce  you  to  undertake.  Thus,  then, 
we  see  that  windows  ought  to  be  transparent ;  or  at  least 
translucent." 

"  What  is  translucent  ?" 

"  Letting  the  light  shine  through.  And  it  is  a  great 
mistake  in  the  art  to  try  to  represent  a  natural  picture  on 
a  translucent  surface.  Our  houses  and  our  bodies  are 
not  translucent,  and  so  to  represent  them  naturally  on 
translucent  material  is  impossible,  and  glass  eannot  give 
perspective.  However  well  a  painting  might  be  imitated 
or>  glass,  it  is  at  best  not  a  picture,  but  only  the  imitation 
of  a  picture. 

"  The  old  glass  painters  never  regarded  their  windows 
as  independent  works,  but  as  part  of  the  general  decora- 
tion of  the  building  ;  nor  did  they  regard  them  as  giving 
true  representations  of  natural  objects,  but  simply  as  an 
ornamental  mode  of  admitting  light,  cast  into  the  form  of 
figures,  &c.,  to  lend  a  direction  to  the  thoughts  of  the 
worshipper,  or  to  teach  him  a  lesson.  They  used  colour 
just  as  they  needed  it  for  harmony,  and  we  may  find  a 
prodigal  son  feeding  red,  blue,  or  yellow  swine  as  suited 
the  requirements  of  colour.  The  design  of  a  window  is 
not  to  be  chosen  for  its  intrinsic  beauty  as  a  drawing,  but 
for  its  fitness  to  be  put  into  glass.    And  truth  to  nature 


WINDOWS  AND  BELLS. 


does  not  necessarily,  or  under  all  circumstances,  consist 
in  a  direct  imitation  of  nature.  Indeed,  the  power  of  true 
art  does  not  consist  so  much  in  mere  imitation  as  in  repre- 
senting a  true  idea  to  the  imagination.  And  although 
true  art  in  painting  has  the  power  of  imitation  in  a  high 
degree,  yet  the  material  in  which  an  idea  has  to  be  em- 
bodied requires  the  very  first  consideration  at  the  hands 
of  an  artist.  From  the  moment  when  it  was  attempted 
to  apply  the  principles  of  mere  painting  to  that  which 
was  truly  a  distinct  branch  of  decorative  art,  glass- 
painting  lost  its  beauties.* 

"  So  much  for  theory  ;  now  for  a  little  history.  The  three 
pointed  styles  of  architecture.  Early  EngUsh,  Decorated, 
and  Perpendicular,  have  their  counterparts  in  glass.  The 
style  of  windows  differed  with  the  different  ages.  Of  these 
differences  I  will  give  you  some  notion,  first  supplying  a 
few  bits  of  technical  information. 

"There  are  two  principal  kinds  of  coloured  glass: 
enamelled,  when  the  colour  is  laid  only  on  the  surface ; 
pot-metal,  when  the  glass  is  coloured  throughout.  But 
enamelled  glass,  which  consists  of  two  thicknesses,  of 
glass,  one  white  and  the  other  coloured,  intermingled 
partly  in  their  manufacture,  must  not  be  confounded  with 
the  ordinary  'flashed'  glass  in  common  use  by  plumbers 
and  glaziers  for  hall  windows,  &c.,  which  is  made  by  merely 
dipping  one  face  of  the  sheet  of  white  glass  into  a  coloured 
solution,  and  which  is  flashy  and  vulgar  in  the  extreme. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  say  it  does  get  introduced  sometimes 
into  church  stained  glass  windows. 

"This  difference  affects  the  entire  appearance  of  a 
window,  the  pot-metal  taking  by  far  the  richer  colours. 

" however  when  not  'flashed'  is  always  coated  on 
the  glass,  as  otherwise  it  would  from  its  intensity  be  black 

'  See  an  article  on  glass-painting  io  the  Edinburgh  JSeiiew,  Januan-.  iS6» 


MANUFACTURE. 


249 


and  opaque ;  shadows  and  outlines  are  painted  on  with 
enamelled  brown  ;  and  a  yellow  stain  introduced  in  the 
beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century,  being  brighter  than 
pot-metal  yellow,  is  of  great  use  for  patterns  upon  white 
glass. 

"  A  coloured  window  properly  made,  the  design  not 
merely  painted  on  glass  already  fixed,  is  thus  arranged. 
After  a  full-sized  drawing  has  been  prepared,  a  copy  is 
traced  from  it  called  a  cutting  drawing,  on  which  the 
workman  marks  the  shape,  size,  and  colour  of  each  piece 
of  glass  to  be  used.  The  glass-cutter  then  selects  the 
tints  as  nearly  as  may  be  to  those  shown  on  the  drawing, 
and  cuts  out  the  pieces  with  a  diamond.  These  pieces 
are  next  fixed  on  a  glass  easel,  the  outhning,  shading,  &c., 
are  drawn  in,  and  the  parts  to  be  stained  yellow  are 
covered  with  a  preparation  of  silver,  which,  when  burned, 
produces  that  effect.  All  the  pieces  are  now  exposed  to 
great  heat  in  a  furnace,  where  they  are  placed  on  iron 
shelves,  with  layers  of  lime.  When  the  shading,  &c.,  has 
thus  been  fixed,  the  cutting  drawing  is  laid  on  a  large  table, 
the  pieces  are  fitted  on  it  as  in  a  child's  puzzle  map,  and 
the  leaden  bands,  grooved  on  each  side  to  receive  the 
glass,  are  bent  and  fixed  into  the  proper  pattern. 

"  Such  is  the  present  mode  of  making  a  window,  and 
no  doubt  much  the  same  course  was  pursued  of  old. 

"  We  know  that  glass  was  early  introduced  into  sacred 
buildings,  as  when  Benet  Biscop,  Bede's  patron,  glazed 
the  windows  of  his  monastery ;  and  Wilfred,  who  succeeded 
St.  Chad  in  the  See  of  York, '  put  such  glass  in  the  windows 
as  allowed  the  light  to  shine  within;'  probably  thick 
greenish  glass  that  let  in  a  dim  light.  But  our  earliest 
examples  are  of  the  twelfth  century,  in  the  clerestory  at 
Canterbury.  The  greater  part  of  our  glass  belongs  to  the 
fifteenth  century. 


WINDOWS  AND  BELLS. 


"  All  the  windows  of  the  middle  ages  seem  to  have  had 
painted  glass.  Much  of  it  consisted  of  running  or  geo- 
metrical patterns  stencilled  in  outline,  in  the  form  of  leaves 
or  flowers,  on  a  greenish  tinted  ground,  with  more  or  less 
of  colour  introduced  in  medallions  and  into  the  borders. 
Even  in  the  richest  windows  of  the  Early  EngUsh  and 
Decorated  periods,  consisting  mostly  of  coloured  glass,  a 
line  of  white  glass,  slightly  tinted,  and  painted  with  a  dot 
or  other  pattern,  marked  out  most  of  the  forms  of  the 
medallion.  The  breadth  of  line  used  in  the  painting 
was  greater  in  the  earlier  windows,  gradually  diminish- 
ing to  a  fine  dehcate  line  in  the  glass  of  the  Perpen- 
dicular period.  And  in  like  manner  the  size  of  the 
pieces  was  small  in  the  earlier  glass  and  gradually  enlarged 
in  the  later  periods.  In  the  late  glass  there  is  a  great 
preponderance  of  pearly  white  introduced,  with  a  consider- 
able amount  of  the  yellow  stain,  and  a  far  less  amount  of 
mosaic  effect.  Early  English  windows  were  commonly 
either  wholly  coloured  or  wholly  uncoloured,  and -the 
period  of  the  Decorated  brought  in  a  much  greater 
admixture  of  the  two.  You  remember  that  the  Early 
English  has  lancet  windows,  and  for  these  medallions, 
or  single  figures  under  small  canopies,  are  most  appro- 
priate. The  early  coloured  windows  are  deep,  vivid, 
gem-like  ;  resembling  in  harmony  a  mosaic  or  a  Turkey 
carpet.  Large  designs  in  figure  subjects  awkwardly  cut 
into  compartments  by  the  muUions  came  in  only  with  the 
Late  Perpendicular  period  ;  previously  to  this,  each  subject 
was  confined  to  its  own  proper  panels.  The  white  glass  with 
patterns  is  very  beautiful  to  an  artistic  eye,  though  perhaps 
wanting  in  effect  to  the  inexperienced.  The  white  is  of 
a  fine  pale  greenish  colour  ;  either  the  square  or  quarry  of 
each  glass  contains  a  pattern,  or  the  squares  are  arranged 
in  a  series  of  long  medallions  :  the  noted  Five  Sisters  at 


DESIGN. 


251 


York,  our  best  Early  English  window,  has  this  medallion 
arrangement. 

"  The  drawing  of  this  period  is  commonly  very  rude, 
and  is  in  all  cases  hard  and  strong ;  some  are  mistaken 
enough  to  aim  at  distorted  drawing  in  windows  now ;  that 
is  folly,  though  for  a  window  drawing  is  of  less  importance 
than  colour.  But  the  drawing  ought  to  be  done  as  in 
geometrical  elevation  rather  than  in  perspective. 

"Early  English  glass -painting  is  distinguished  by 
strong  dark  lines  of  enamel  brown,  a  great  quantity  of 
lead  work,  and  some  remarkably  fine  colours,  soft  and 
rich ;  from  the  nature  of  the  glass  imperfectly  transparent. 
The  blue  is  especially  beautiful  and  unique,  a  sort  of 
deep  purple  grey. 

"  The  Decorated  style  has  more  natural  foliage  in  its 
patterns,  instead  of  stiff  scrolls  ;  has  its  figures  placed 
under  large  canopies  more  than  in  the  Early  English  ; 
these  canopies  generally  representing  the  architecture  of 
the  time.  The  drawing  of  figiues  becomes  more  correct. 
The  yrlUno  slain  is  first  introduced  now— /.f.  in  Edward 
ll.'s  ruign.  The  outlines  are  less  dark  than  before  ;  the 
glass  less  thick  ;  the  red  more  evenly  coloured,  instead 
of  a  cloudy  changefulness,  which  gave  hitherto  great 
splendour  to  the  colour  ;  the  deep  blue  is  lighter,  and  the 
yellow  stain,  mudi  used,  imparts  a  gay  appearance. 

"  The  Perpendicular  st^  lc  has,  once  more,  conventional 
foliage  ;  canopies  remLiin  large,  and  after  the  middle  of 
the  fifteenth  century  they  are  drawn  in  perspective.  The 
colours  are  now  lighter,  and,  of  course,  with  the  enlarge- 
ment of  windows,  the  designs  had  already  extended.  A 
new  and  more  transparent  shading  was  introduced,  done 
by  a  dotted  process  called  stippliiiti,  whereas  hitherto  it 
had  been  done  by  fines  and  smears.  Tlie  drawmg  of 
figures  improves,  and  so  very  olten  does  that  ol  the 


2S2 


WINDOWS  AND  BELLS. 


drapery.  The  great  Albert  Diirer  devoted  much  of  his 
power  to  the  art  of  glass-painting,  and  his  drapery  here, 
as  in  his  etchings,  is  remarkable  for  a  multitude  of  little 
crumples  breal<ing  its  surface.  The  wndows  of  Fairford 
in  Gloucestershire,  the  parish  where  was  Keble's  early 
home,  are  believed  to  be  by  Diirer. 

"  The  Renaissance,  or  Cinque  Cento  style,  coeval  with 
the  latter  period  of  the  Perpendicular,  had  brighter  and 
more  brilliant  colours,  and  made  great  efforts  after  correct- 
ness of  drawing :  it  leant  towards  the  idea  of  making  a 
picture  of  each  window.  But  the  date  of  the  glory  of 
English  glass  was  then  passed  by  ;  the  Early  EngUsh  and 
Decorated  periods  saw  its  perfection." 

"  Are  no  good  windows  made  now,  then  ?" 

"  Certainly,  there  are  many,  as  there  is  much  good 
modern  architecture.  But  in  both  these  arts  we  can  only 
copy  our  ancestors,  and  even  then,  in  this  matter  of  glass, 
we  cannot  equal  them.  Time  itself  gives  a  peculiar 
beauty  to  a  rich  window." 

"Are  any  people  now  celebrated  for  making  good 
windows  ?" 

"  The  art  was  revived  mainly  by  Willement  and  Sales, 
who  never  advanced,  however,  beyond  a  certain  point. 

Amongst  the  first  of  the  present  day,  are  Clapton  and 
Bell ;  Morris,  Marshall,  &  Co.,  or  the  Firm  of  Artists  ; 
Heaton  and  Butler,  Lavers  and  Barraud,  and  Hardmaii, 
whose  works  are  known  for  clever  drawing  and  transparent 
brilliancy.  Some,  however,  complain  of  their  thin  glass 
and  preponderance  of  gaudy  blue.  A  glass  founded  on 
the  Cinque  Cenio  style  is  made  in  a  celebrated  manu- 
factory at  Munich,  and  this  glass  has  been  introduced  into 
Glasgow  Cathedral,  where  it  is  much  admired  by  those 
who  do  not  know  what  stained  glass  ought  to  be.  On  the 
whole,  however,  most  persons  prefer  the  imitations  of  the 
Gothic  glass." 


MEMORIAL  WINDOWS. 


253 


"Thank  you,  auntie.  Now  I  am  so  well  informed,  I 
hope  my  taste  will  improve." 

"  I  am  afraid  these  are  rather  dry  technicalities  which 
I  have  been  giving  you  ;  but  since  you  really  care  for  the 
subject,  you  may  find  even  these  notes  of  use. 

"There  certainly  is  a  wonderful  beauty,  and  also  a 
wonderful  use,  in  coloured  glass.  The  solemn  light  which 
comes  through  it  lends  dignity  to  a  very  simple  building, 
while  the  finest  architecture  without  it  looks  cold  :  witness 
Salisbury  Cathedral.  The  subjects  give  matter  for  thought 
or  instruction,  and  they  cannot  fail  to  catch  the  most 
wandering  eye.  And  for  memorials,  I  think  they  are 
supreme.  I  would  make  many  efforts  to  lay  by  such  a 
sum  as  should  enable  me  to  leave  to  my  church  one  little 
window  to  my  memory,  through  which  God's  holy  light 
should  shine  in  sacred  emblems  and  harmonious  colours, 
to  teach  the  people  and  beautify  the  House  of  my  Master." 

As  they  sat  quiet  for  a  few  seconds  after  this,  the  voices 
of  the  bells  of  that  Master's  House  began  to  peal  a  merry 
peal  for  a  wedding. 

"  I  think  I  ought  to  have  a  lesson  on  bells  also,"  said 
Joan. 

'•'I  have  no  notes  on  them,  but  I  can  give  you  an 
abstract  of  a  capital  paper  on  bells,  in  an  old  number  of 
the  Quarterly  Review. 

Joan  begged  for  the  abstract ;  her  aunt  found  the  paper 
and  gave  her  the  following  facts  : 

"  Bells  for  the  purpose  of  calling  people  together  in  large 
numbers  seem  to  be  of  Christian  origin.  They  were  used, 
in  a  diminutive  form,  as  sacred  ornaments  among  the 
Jews  :  '  A  bell  and  a  pomegranate,  a  bell  and  a  pome- 
granate, round  about  the  hem  of  the  robe  to  minister 
in  ;  as  the  Lord  commanded  Moses.'  Handbells  were 
used  among  the  Greeks,  to  call  guests  to  the  feast,  to 


254 


WINDOWS  AND  BELLS. 


precede  funerals,  &c. ;  and  among  the  Romans,  hours  of 
meals  and  bathing  were  marked  thus  by  the  sound  of  a 
handbell.  The  practice  of  bellhanging — i.e.  of  passing 
bell-wires  through  the  walls  of  a  house — is  of  this  centur>' 
only.  Large  bells  hung  in  a  tower  seem  to  have  been 
unknown  before  A.D.  500.  They  were  first  made  in  Cam- 
pania in  Italy,  whence  the  Italian  name  campatia,  a  bell, 
and  campanile,  a  bell-tower.  Bells  were  anciently  sup- 
posed to  have  considerable  powers,  especially  against 
evil  spirits.  Their  use  for  religious  purposes  probably 
originated  this  belief.  The  handbells  of  the  British 
Apostles  — St.  Patrick,  St.  Columba,  St.  David,  &c.— 
are  said  to  ha\  e  been  long  preserved,  if  not  existing  even 
now.  They  are  four-sided  bronze  bells,  sometimes  of 
several  plates  fused  into  one.  St.  Patrick  is  said,  by 
an  old  legend,  to  have  dispersed  a  host  of  demons,  who 
were  too  bold  to  be  scared  by  the  mere  ringing  of  the 
bell,  by  flinging  it  into  the  midst  of  them.  Oaths  were 
offered  upon  hells,  and  were  regarded  as  more  sacred 
even  than  oaths  upon  the  Gospels. 

"  Bells  in  the  middle  ages  were  sometimes  dedicated  to 
Saints,  as  that  at  the  Abbey  of  Crowland  (which  we  have 
heard  of)  was  called  Hulhlac,  after  the  local  Patron  Saint. 
They  were  christened  with  all  tlic  usual  ceremonies,  and 
with  much  pomp  ;  sponsors  were  provided,  the  bell  was 
sprinkled  at  the  font,  anointed  with  oil,  and  robed  in  a 
chrisom.  A  feast  followed,  and  money  was  given  to  the 
poor. 

"  Inscriptions  were  often  engraved  upon  the  bells,  as  for 
instance — 

'*  *  Jesus,  who  abidest  above  the  stars, 

Heal  our  wounds.' 

•"May  my  sound  please  Thee,  O  Christ, 
Heavenly  King  1' 


LARGE  BELLS. 


255 


"  The  following  was  very  common  : 

"  '  Funera  plango,  Fulgura  frango,  Sabbata  pango, 
Excito  lentos,  Dissipo  ventos,  Paco  cruentos.* 

"  The  English  is— 

" '  I  moum  the  dead,  I  break  the  lightning,  I  announce  the  Sabbath. 
I  excite  the  slothful,  I  disperse  the  winds,  I  appease  the  cruel.' 

All  these  powers  being  attributed  to  bells.  For  the  second, 
the  bells  were  generally  set  ringing  during  a  thunder-storm, 
to  avert  the  bolts  from  the  churches.  Superstitious  as 
these  customs  would  seem  now,  there  is,  to  my  mind, 
something  fine  in  the  simple  faith  which  thus,  in  those 
more  poetic  days,  consecrated  to  God's  service  the 
voices  which  should  proclaim  Him  far  and  wide  over 
the  land. 

"  The  largest  bells  in  the  world  are  in  Russia  ;  the 
Great  Bell  at  Moscow,  named  the  Czar  Kolokol — the 
Czar  Bell,  weighing  198  tons,  raised  in  1837,  serves  as  a 
dome  over  the  pit  in  which  it  was  cast,  which  is  con- 
secrated as  a  chapel.  Being  too  heavy  to  hang,  it  can 
never  be  rung.  The  bell  of  St.  Ivan's  Church,  Moscow, 
weighing  57  tons  (not  one-third  the  size  of  the  Czar,  you 
see),  sounds  but  thrice  a  year,  sending  over  the  city  a 
thunderous  roar,  which  makes  the  whole  place  tremble. 
The  Russian  bells  are  merely  suspended  immovably,  and 
the  clapper  of  St.  Ivan's  requires  three  men  to  move  it 
from  side  to  side. 

"  Compare  with  these  our  great  Westminster  bell, 
weighing  only  15  tons,  and  you  can  have  some  idea  of 
;the  Russian  giants.  Our  Great  Peter  of  York  weighs  10 
tons  1 5  cwt. ;  Great  Tom  of  Oxford,  7  tons  1 1  cwt. ; 
Great  Tom  of  Lincoln,  5  tons  8  cwt.  These  last  two  are 
said  to  be  named  from  their  Tom-like  sound. 


256 


WINDOWS  AND  BELLS. 


"  But  although  we  have  nothing  to  boast  of  in  the  size 
of  our  bells,  we  may  take  an  honest  pride  in  the  fact  that 
ours  is  par  excellence  the  country  of  bell-ringing.  With 
us  it  is  a  science.  In  other  countries  the  bells  give  out 
but  a  clang,  unless  struck  by  machinery  in  a  carillon  or 
chime,  as  is  common  in  Belgium.  Many  books  have 
been  wi-itten  on  the  subject  of  bell-ringing  ;  men  have 
studied  and  practised  it  as  an  art.  Its  terms  seem  very 
mysterious  to  outsiders,  comprising  such  words  as  bob- 
major,  plain  bob-triple,  bob-major  reversed,  double  bob- 
major,  and  bob-maximus.  'Who  Bob  was'  (says  Southey 
in  The  Doctor),  '  and  whether  he  were  Bob  Major  or 
Major  Bob,  that  is  whether  Major  were  his  name  or  his 
rank,  and  if  his  rank,  to  what  ser\'ice  he  belonged,  are 
questions  which  inexorable  oblivion  will  not  answer, 
however  earnestly  adjured.'  It  is  indeed  a  great  pride 
that  our  sweet  Sunday  peals,  'the  poor  man's  music,' 
speak  for  the  English  Church  alone." 

"  Oh,  auntie,  I  love  the  bells  !  I  think  I  must  be  like 
the  little  girl  we  were  reading  about,  to  whom  'the  toUings 
of  the  knell,  full  and  deep  and  satisfying,  were  like  an 
infinite  voice  from  Heaven,  repeating  always,  Peace  ! 
Peace  !  Peace  !'"* 

"I,  too,  love  them,"  answered  Mrs.  Askell.  "Distant 
bells  always  remind  me  of  the  Sundays  of  a  happy  part 
of  my  childhood,  when  my  mother  and  I  used  to  walk 
through  a  wood  to  church,  and  resting  on  a  stone  which 
we  christened  '  Morning-seat,'  heard  the  first  voices  of 
the  chimes  coming  through  the  leaves.  There  is  some 
remarkable  charm  in  the  sound  of  bells  in  a  wood  ;  the 
sunny  air  and  the  half-shade,  and  the  humming  undertone 
of  moving  leaves  and  birds  twittering,  seem  to  wake  into 
a  new  life  with  these  voices  of  God's  House  sounding 

*  Cantpattella^  chap.  iv. 


THE  BELL. 


257 


over  them.  Do  you  know  Andersen's  tale  of  The  Bell  in 
the  Wood?" 

No  ;  Joan  did  not  know  it.  Mrs.  Askell  sent  her  for 
the  book,  and  Joan  read  aloud  that  most  beautiful  of 
such  stories.  But  her  voice  failed  at  the  last.  The 
deep  pathos  was  too  touching.  And  yet,  where  was  the 
pathos?  Like  the  voice  of  that  bell,  it  was  to  be  felt, 
never  seen,  and  felt  only  by  those  that  have  hearts  open 
to  the  pure  breath  of  God's  higher  world  of  poetry  and 
truth  and  nobleness. 

Aunt  and  niece  read  silently  to  the  end,  where  the 
prince  and  peasant  meet,  by  "  the  boundless,  magnificent 
sea"  beyond  the  forest.  "  The  forest  was  singing  and  the 
sea  was  singing,  and  his  heart  joined  their  hymns  of 
praise.  All  nature  was  one  vast  holy  church,  whose 
pillars  were  formed  by  trees  and  floating  clouds,  whose 
velvet  coverings  were  represented  by  grass  and  flowers, 
and  whose  dome  was  imaged  forth  by  the  sky  itself— and 
the  King's  son  stretched  forth  his  arms  towards  Heaven, 
towards  the  sea,  and  towards  the  forest.  Just  at  that 
moment,  the  poor  boy  with  the  short  sleeves  and  the 
wooden  shoes  emerged  from  the  right-hand  road  ;  he  too 
had  come  just  in  time,  having  reached  the  same  point  by 
another  way.  And  they  ran  to  meet  each  other,  and 
stood,  hand  in  hand,  in  the  vast  church  of  nature  and 
poetry.  And  above  them  sounded  the  invisible,  solemn 
bell,  while  holy  spirits  floated  around  them,  singing  a 
joyous  hallelujah  !" 


S 


CHAPTER  XV. 


Thou,  Lordy  art  tlie  Father  of  Mitsic, 
Sweet  sounds  are  a  whisper  from  Thee  I 

Thou  hast  made  Thy  creation  all  antftems, 
Tlwugh  it  singeth  tliem  silently. 

"  But  I gtiess  by  the  stir  of  this  music 
What  raptures  in  heaven  can  be, 
Wliere  the  sound  is  Thy  marvellous  stillness. 
And  tlie  music  is  light  out  of  Thee."  Faber. 

HE  beautiful  music  of  St.  Salvador's  was  a  great 


delight  to  Joan,  and  the  flowing  hymns  uttered  by 
almost  evei-y  voice  in  the  building  gave  her  a  sense  of 
joy  and  satisfaction  which  at  times  brimmed  over  in  tears. 
She  was  a  sensitive  and  thoughtful  person,  and  to  such 
nothing  is  more  powerfully  moving  than  the  united  voices 
of  many  human  beings. 

One  day  there  happened  to  be  in  the  church  a  foreigner  : 


and  near  him  sat  a  German  lady  who  had  lately  come  to 
the  place.  Both  joined  their  voices  heartily  v\nth  those  of 
the  English  people  around  them.  The  circumstance 
struck  Joan  forcibly,  and  nfterwards  she  said  to  her  aunt : 
"  I  think  music  must  be  the  language  of  Heaven,  for  it  is 
the  only  language  which  every  one  seems  to  understand. 
All  nations  can  join  in  that  and  in  no  other." 


"  He  was  a  youth  of  dusky 
On  whom  the  Indian  sun  \ 


had  been," 


VARIOUS  SCALES. 


259 


"  It  is  a  pretty  fancy,"  answered  Mrs  Askell ;  "  but,  like 
most  theories,  fades  somewhat  on  inspection.  For  the 
language  of  music  does  not  correspond  in  all  countries." 

"  1  know  that  the  style  of  music  diifers  ;  as,  for  instance, 
the  English  is  generally  lively,  the  Irish  sweet,  and  tlie 
Scotch  plaintive." 

"  And  more  than  that :  there  are  more  fundamental 
differences.  The  very  alphabet  of  .music  differs  in  dif- 
ferent countries." 

"  How  can  that  be?   What  is  the  alphabet  of  music  ?" 

"  I  should  call  the  notes  and  scales  the  alphabet  of 
music." 

"  But  they  must  be  the  same  all  the  world  over." 

"  No,  I  assure  you.  A  French  savant  travelling  with 
Napoleon's  expedition  to  Egypt  for  the  purpose  of  collect- 
ing information  concerning  Oriental  music  took  lessons 
of  an  Arabian  music-master,  whose  songs  the  Frenchman 
wrote  down.  Finding  that  his  master  frequendy  sang 
out  of  tune,  he  corrected  the  errors  in  his  manuscript,  but 
when  he  sang  from  it  the  Arabian  musician  stopped  his 
ears  in  horror,  the  intcrx  als  being  all,  to  his  perception, 
frightfully  out  of  tune." 

"What  was  the  matter?" 

"  The  matter  was  that  the  Oriental  scale  was  essentially 
different  from  that  to  which  the  Frenchman  was  ac- 
customed. 

"As  we  are  on  this  subject,  I  will  try  to  give  you  a 
sketch  of  Church  music,  and  I  think  I  must  begin  where 
the  Church  herself  may  be  said  to  begin :  with  the  very 
commencement  of  things.  This  leads  us  first  to  the  name 
Mahalaleel  in  Gen.  v.  12.  That  name  means  'Giving 
praise  to  God,'  and  it  has  hence  been  conjectured  that 
vocal  religious  music  was  already  known  among  the 
Sethiles.    Indeed,  we  can  hardly  conceive  that  c\ea  the 


26o 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


days  of  Adam  in  Paradise  can  have  passed  by  without 
vocal  praise  given  to  God ;  but  this  name  Mahalaleel  is 
the  first  hint  we  have  of  it  in  the  Bible.  We  next  come 
to  Gen.  iv.  21,  where  we  find  Jubal,  who  "was  the  father 
of  aU  such  as  handle  the  harp  and  organ.' " 
"  But  this  is  going  backwards." 

"  No.  If  you  count  the  generations,  you  will  find 
Mahalaleel  only  four  from  Adam,  while  Jubal  was  se\  en. 
And  it  is  certain  that  vocal  music  would  precede  instru- 
mental." 

"  What  can  be  meant  by  the  organ  ?  Something  verj- 
different  from  ours,  I  suppose." 

"Certainly.  The  Hebrew  word  {'t'lf^db  or  uggdb\  com- 
ing from  a  root  meaning  to  blow  or  breathe,  merely  points 
it  out  as  a  reed  instrument  as  distinguished  from  stringed 
instruments,  of  which  Jubal's  harp  must  have  been  the 
earliest  form.  Indeed,  the  word  here  translated  organ  is 
rendered  pipe  in  Isaiah  xxx.  29,  and  Jer.  xlviii.  36,  and 
Hebrew  commentators  think  that  it  was  simply  the  Pan's 
pipes  or  shepherd's  pipe  mentioned  so  often  by  Homer 
and  other  ancient  writers.  It  is  composed  of  reeds  of 
different  lengths  bound  together.  Such  an  instrument  is 
still  used  in  Syria,  and  the  upper  notes  are  clear  and 
sweet,  though  the  lower  notes  are  harsh. 

"After  the  Deluge,  we  find  Laban  reproaching  Jacob 
with  having  stolen  away  so  secretly  that  he  had  been 
unable  to  bid  him  God-speed  with  music,  'with  songs, 
with  tabret,  and  with  harp.'  (Gen.  xxxi.  27.)  The  tabret 
was  the  same  instrument  as  the  timbrel  used  by  Miriam 
when,  as  prophetess,  she  led  the  procession  and  chant  of 
the  women  at  the  Red  Sea.  It  is  also  the  same  as  the 
tabor,  often  mentioned  in  the  Bible.  In  Hebrew  it  is 
called  toph,  and  is  undoubtedly  the  same  as  an  instrument 
now  used  by  the  Arabs,  and  called  the  duff  or  diff.  This 


MUSIC  IN  THE  BIBLE. 


261 


is  much  like  our  modern  tambourine,  a  skin  stretched 
over  a  hoop  in  which  jinghng  pieces  of  metal  are  fixed." 

"  I  wonder  what  tune  Miriam  sang." 

"  I  cannot  answer  for  the  fact,  but  I  can  show  you  an 
air  which  is  said  to  be  the  identical  one  sung  by  her.  It 
is  still  performed  in  the  Jewish  Church,  and  the  care  with 
which  the  Jews  preserve  their  ancient  text  is  also  extended 
to  their  ancient  music.  It  is  at  least  a  striking  fact, 
recorded  by  a  traveller  whose  object  was  to  gain  informa- 
tion about  music,  that  when  he  obtained  the  same  air 
from  various  sources  it  was  apt  to  differ  in  any  case  but 
in  that  of  Jewish  tunes,  which,  even  if  procured  from 
various  countries,  are  always  precisely  alike." 

Mrs.  Askell  then  played  the  Jewish  hymn,  certainly  a 
wild  and  singular  air,  as  much  unlike  those  used  among 
us  as  one  can  conceive.  Mrs.  Askell  said  that  she  had 
heard  it  sung  in  chorus  to  Hebrew  words  with  accompani- 
ment of  cymbals  and  timbicls,  and  that  the  effect  was 
weird  and  solemn  in  the  exticmc.*  "  You  may  judge  how 
wild  was  the  religious  music  of  Moses'  time,"  she  added, 
"by  the  mistake  of  Joshua  (lixodus  xxxii.  17,  18),  who 
thought  that  the  singing  of  the  jieople  around  their  calf- 
god  was  the  shout  and  cry  of  war. 

"We  now  come  to  the  well-ordered  music  of  David's 
time.  The  same  instruments  were  still  used,  though  their 
form  was  probably  modified  to  produce  a  sweeter  melody. 
In  Psalm  Ixviii.  25,  we  see  the  solemn  procession  bringing 
in  triumph  the  Ark  of  God  into  His  resting-place.  'The 
singers  go  before,  the  minstrels  follow  after,  in  the  midst 
are  the  damsels  pla)'ing  v.itb  the  timbrels.'  Comparing 
I  Chron.  xv.  and  2  S^ni.  vi.  16,  we  find  the  occasion  for 
which  this  Psalm  was  composed  and  the  imposing  ritual 

*  Tliis  air  can  be  found  in  Haslam's  Sacred  and  Musical  Gems. 
HamiUou,  Adanis,  &  Co.    li.    See  Appendix  to  tliis  chapter. 


262 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


of  the  ceremony.  'The  procession  is  made  up  by  the 
singers  who  marched  in  front,  and  tlie  players  on  stringed 
instruments  who  brought  up  the  rear,  while  round  them 
all  danced  the  young  maidens  with  their  timbrels.'*  Or 
let  us  read  the  account  from  Stanley's  Lectures  on  ihe 
Jewish  ChurchA 

■■■  l£\Li)  arrangement  was  made  for  the  music  under 
the  Levite  musicians  Heman,  Asaph,  and  Ethan  or 
Jeduthun,  and  Chenaniah,  "the  master  of  the  song." 
Obed-edom  still  ministered  to  the  Ark  which  he  had 
guarded.  According  to  the  Chronicles,  the  priests  and 
Levites,  under  the  two  heads  of  the  Aaronic  famih ,  figured 
in  vast  state.  As  soon  as  the  first  successful  start  had 
been  made,  a  double  sacrifice  was  offered.  The  well-known 
shout,  which  accompanied  the  raising  of  the  Ark  at  the 
successive  movements  in  the  wilderness,  was  doubtless 
heard  once  more  :  "  Let  God  arise,  and  let  His  enemies 
be  scattered.  Arise,  O  Lord,  into  Thy  rest ;  Thou,  and 
the  Ark  of  Thy  strength."  The  priests  in  their  splendid 
dresses,  the  two  rival  tribes  of  the  South,  Judah  and 
Benjamin,  the  two  warlike  tribes  of  the  North,  Zebulun 
and  Naphthali,  are  conspicuous  in  the  procession.  David 
himself  was  dressed  in  the  white  linen  mantle  of  the 
priestly  order  ;  and,  as  in  the  prophetic  schools  where  he 
had  been  brought  up  — and  as  still  in  the  colleges  of 
Eastern  dervishes — a  wild  dance  fonned  part  of  the 
solemnity.  Into  this  the  King  threw  himself  with  unusual 
enthusiasm  :  his  heavy  royal  robe  was  thrown  aside  ;  the 
light  linen  ephod  appeared  to  the  bystanders  hardly  more 
than  the  slight  dress  of  the  Eastern  dancers.  He  himself 
had  a  harp  in  his  hand,  with  which  he  accompanied  the 
dance.  It  may  be  that,  according  to  the  Psalms  ascribed 

*  ^uyzvl'^  Dictionary  of  tite  Bible,  Pixx..  "Timbrel." 
+  Lecture  xxiiL 


SCHOOLS  OF  THE  PROPHETS.  263 


to  this  epoch,  this  enthusiasm  expressed  not  merely  the 
pubhc  rejoicing,  but  his  personal  feehng  of  joy  at  the 
contrast  between  the  depth  of  danger — "the  grave,"  as  it 
seemed — out  of  which  he  had  been  snatched,  and  the 
exulting  triumph  of  the  present ;  the  exchange  of  sad 
mourning  for  the  festive  dress,  of  black  sackcloth  for  the 
white  cloak  of  gladness.  The  women  came  out  to  welcome 
him  and  his  sacred  charge,  as  was  the  custom  on  the 
return  from  victory.  The  trumpets  pealed  loud  and  long, 
as  if  they  were  entering  a  captured  city  ;  the  shout  as  of 
a  victorious  host  rang  through  the  valleys  of  Hinnom  and 
of  the  Kcdron,  and  as  they  wound  up  the  steep  ascent 
which  led  to  the  fortress.  Now  at  last  the  long  wanderings 
of  the  Ark  were  over.  "  The  Lord  hath  chosen  Zion. 
He  hath  desired  it  for  His  habitation.  This  is  my  rest 
for  ever  ;  here  will  I  dwell,  and  delight  therein."  It  was 
safely  lodged  within  the  new  Tabernacle  which  David  had 
erected  for  it  on  Mount  Zion,  to  supply  the  place  of  the 
ancient  tent  which  still  lingered  at  Gibeon.' 

"  From  all  this  we  see  that  music  must  have  reached  a 
high  state  of  cultivation  in  urdt-r  to  produce  such  a  ser- 
vice. And  this  was  really  the  case.  The  '  schools  of  the 
prophets'  were  certainly  schools  of  music.  There  were 
three  and  perhaps  four  such  schools  :  at  IScthel  (i  Sam. 
X.  S),  where  we  meet  the  students  with  their  psaltery, 
tabret,  pipe,  and  hai-p  ;  at  Naioth  in  Ramah  (i  Sam. 
xix.  20);  at  Jericho  (2  Kings  ii.  5) ;  and  perhaps  at  Jeru- 
salem (2  Kings  xxii.  14),  where  the  school  is  called  'the 
college,'  a  very  modern-seeming  term  ;  but  the  interpre- 
tation is  not  quite  clear. 

"  I'rofessed  musicians  were  attached  to  the  Court,  and 
when  the  Temple  was  built,  its  constant  magnificent 
services  would  keep  up  the  standard  of  the  music,  and 
raise  it  still  higher.    But  of  this  music  as  a  science  we 


264 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


have  no  certain  knowledge.*  The  trials  and  captivities 
and  final  dispersion  suffered  by  the  Jews  are  the  cause  of 
this.  Yet  we  know  that  the  chanting  was  antiphonal; 
and  as  the  first  Christians  were  also  devout  Jews,  and 
used  the  Jewish  services,  feasts,  and  ceremonies  on  which 
to  graft  their  own  higher  doctrine  (as  I  have  already 
pointed  out  in  our  third  lesson),  it  is  natural  to  imagine 
that  they  would  also  take  the  music  used  in  the  Temple. 
Indeed,  it  would  be  irrational  to  suppose  that  they  at 
once  composed  new  tunes,  or  used  those  of  the  heathen. 
They  must,  then,  have  used  the  Jewish.  Now,  seeking 
back  as  far  as  we  can  in  the  history  of  Christian  music, 
we  find  the  Gregorian  tones  in  an  old  notation,  unknown 
to  us  now,  and  only  to  be  read  by  a  careful  comparison  of 
one  sign  with  another.  These  tones  or  chants  are,  then, 
the  earliest  Christian  music  we  find,  and  the  inference  is 
that  these  were  known  to  the  Jews.  There  is  a  tradition 
that  our  Lord  sang  the  hymn  on  the  night  of  His  betrayal 
(St.  Mark  xiv.  26)  to  the  Gregorian  tone  known  as  the 
'Tonus  Peregrinus,'  or  'Pilgrim's  Chant.'" 

"  How  interesting  !    Do  play  me  that  tone." 

Mrs.  Askell  did  so,  as  follows : — 


T®NUS  PEREGRINUS. 


"  Beyond  this,  we  know  nothing  of  the  music  used  by 
the  early  Christians ;  but  Eusebius  tells  us  of  a  regular 
choir  in  his  time  (fourth  century)  at  Antioch,  and  of  an 


i.MlTH  S  Dictionary  oj  the  BlUe,  Art.  "  Music." 


57:  AMBROSE. 


order  of  monks  who  practised  perennial  psalmody.  The 
Psalms  were  chanted  antiphonally  as  early  as  the  time  of 
St.  Ignatius,  the  disciple  of  St.  John. 

"  But  that  it  is  hard  to  imagine  a  well-organized  service 
without  music,  we  must  believe  that  religious  singing,  at 
any  rate  hymn-singing,  was  introduced  into  the  Western 
Church  as  late  as  A.D.  374,  by  the  great  St.  Ambrose, 
Bishop  of  Milan.  For  St.  Augustine  (not  our  English 
St.  Augustine,  but  the  mighty  Bishop  of  Hippo  in  Africa), 
speaking  of  his  attendance  at  the  Church  of  St.  Ambrose, 
by  whom  he  was  converted  and  baptized,  writes  as 
follows :  '  How  did  I  weep,  in  Thy  hymns  and  canticles 
(TVy,  because  speaking  to  the  Lord),  touched  to  the  quick 
by  the  voices  of  Thy  sweet  attuned  Church  !  The  voices 
flowed  into  mine  ears  and  the  truth  distilled  into  my  heart, 
whence  the  affections  of  my  devotion  overflowed  and  tears 
ran  down,  and  happy  was  I  therein.'" 

"  I  know  what  it  is  to  feel  like  that,"  said  Joan. 

Mrs.  Askell  continued  reading  : — 

'"Not  long  had  the  Church  of  Milan  begun  to  use  this 
kind  of  consolation  and  exhortation,  the  brethren  jealously 
joining  with  harmony  of  voice  and  heart.  For  it  was  a 
year,  or  not  much  more,  that  Justina,  mother  to  the 
Emperor  Valentinian,  a  child,  persecuted  Thy  servant 
Ambrose,  in  favour  of  her  heresy  to  which  she  was  seduced 
by  the  Arians.  The  devout  people  kept  watch  in  the 
church,  ready  to  die  with  their  Bishop  Thy  servant.  Then 
it  was  first  instituted  that  after  the  manner  of  the  Eastern 
Churches,  hymns  and  psalms  should  be  sung,  lest  the 
people  should  wax  faint  through  the  tediousness  of  sorrow: 
and  from  that  day  to  this  the  custom  is  retained,  divers 
(yea,  almost  all)  of  Thy  congregations  throughout  other 
parts  of  the  world  following  herein.' 

"  To  Ambrose  the  early  Church  music  owed  much  :  how 


266 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


much,  it  is  very  hard  to  say  ;  but  he  is  too  noble  and 
striking  a  figure  to  be  passed  over  thus.  I  must  give  you 
a  short  biography  of  him. 

"  His  father  was  a  noble  citizen  of  Rome,  and  was 
Imperial  Prefect  or  Lieutenant  of  Gaul  when  his  son  was 
born,  about  a.d.  340,  at  Aries  or  at  Treves.  He  had  a 
sister,  MarceUina,  and  a  brother,  Satyrus ;  both  good 
persons  and  much  beloved  by  him. 

"  When  Ambrose  was  an  infant,  it  is  said  that  a  swarm 
of  bees  settled  on  the  cradle  in  which  he  lay  asleep  and 
crept  in  and  out  of  his  mouth.  Hence  his  eloquence  was 
foretold.    The  same  anecdote  is  related  of  Plato. 

"Another  story  of  his  childhood  is  that,  seeing  his 
mother  and  sister  kiss  the  hand  of  the  Bishop,  he  held 
out  his  little  hand  to  be  kissed  too,  saying  that  he  knew 
he  should  be  a  Bishop  one  day. 

"  This  did  not  seem  very  likely  to  come  to  pass,  for  he 
was  trained  for  the  law,  and  ultimately  became  Governor 
of  yEmilia  and  Liguria,  residing  in  Milan.  He  ruled 
wisely  and  well,  and  was  beloved  and  respected  by  all. 

"At  this  time  Milan  had  an  Arian  Bishop  (you  re- 
member what  the  Arian  heresy  was,  and  how  sternly 
Athanasius  opposed  it).  He  died  in  the  year  374,  and  the 
Emperor  Valentinian,  to  whom  the  choice  of  a  new  Bishop 
was  offered,  resigned  his  right  in  favour  of  the  Bishops  of 
the  province.  They  met  in  the  cathedral  to  elect  their 
Metropolitan,  but  the  Arian  and  Orthodox  Bishops  could 
by  no  means  agree,  until  Ambrose,  rising,  soothed  them 
with  his  sweet  and  powerful  eloquence.  Then  a  voice  in 
the  crowd  cried  :  '  Ambrose,  be  Bishop  !'  All  took  up  the 
shout,  and  after  much  reluctance  on  his  part,  Ambrose, 
though  at  that  time  only  a  catechumen  for  baptism,  was 
elected,  baptized,  and  consecrated  Bishop,  in  the  presence 
of  the  Emperor,  A.D.  374." 


sr.  AMBROSE. 


267 


"  What  a  sudden  proceeding  !" 

"  Yes  ;  yet  what  a  successful  one  !  The  strong  life  of 
the  Church  in  earlier  days  could  afford  to  cast  aside  many 
forms  which  now  are  held  essential. 

"  Nothing  could  be  more  admirable  than  the  conduct  of 
Ambrose  as  Bishop,  and  that  training  which  had  been 
lacking  before  his  election  he  diligently  acquired  after- 
wards. 

"  But  when  Valentinian  died,  leaving  his  son  Gratian 
on  the  throne,  who  associated  with  himself  his  younger 
brother  Valentinian  II.,  the  Empress-mother  Justina,  an 
Arian,  obtained  a  power  unknown  to  her  before,  and 
bitter  days  set  in  for  the  orthodox.  Yet,  in  spite  of  much 
disfavour  from  the  Court,  Ambrose  stood  firm  to  Church 
and  Throne,  and  was  able  to  render  great  services  to  the 
young  Emperor  Valentinian  (Gratian  was  murdered  in 
383).  Valentinian  and  Justina  desired  to  possess  the 
cathedral  for  the  Arians,  but  Ambrose  would  by  no  means 
give  it  up,  and  when  soldiers  were  sent  into  the  sacred 
edifice  itself,  he  threatened  to  excommunicate  them  if  they 
should  disturb  the  service.  They  replied,  humbly  enough, 
that  they  wished  to  pray  and  not  to  fight,  and  knelt  down 
among  the  worshippers.  Ambrose  was  actually  besieged 
by  the  Emperor's  troops,  but  then  (as  St.  Augustine  has 
told  us)  the  faithful  remained  watching  with  their  Bishop, 
and  were  encouraged  by  the  singing  of  hymns  and  psalms. 

"But  the  most  remarkable  passage  in  the  life  of  this 
great  prelate  was  his  treatment  of  Theodosius,  Emperor 
of  the  East,  himself  a  great  man  in  the  better  sense  of  the 
word,  who  had  been  invited  into  the  West  to  defend 
Gralinn  against  a  usurper.  This  he  did  successfully,  and 
then  for  some  time  he  remained  in  the  West.  Meanwhile, 
a  tumult  occurred  in  Thessalonia,  in  which  some  of  the 
imperial  officers  were  murdered.    Theodosius,  a  violent- 


268 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


tempered  man,  caused  a  large  number  of  the  Thessalonians 
to  be  invited  to  the  circus,  and  there  butchered  in  punish- 
ment for  the  recent  tumult.  Ambrose  was  roused  to  holy 
anger  by  this  outrage,  and  when  Theodosius  next  entered 
Milan,  instead  of  presenting  himself  before  him,  the 
Bishop  wrote  a  stern  but  fatherly  letter,  insisting  on 
the  necessity  for  repentance.  Theodosius,  in  reply,  came 
to  the  church,  but  Ambrose  met  him  on  the  threshold  and 
refused  him  entrance,  asking  if  he  dared  receive  the  body 
and  blood  of  the  Lord  while  his  hands  were  yet  reeking 
with  the  blood  of  his  victims.  He  commanded  the 
Emperor  to  submit  to  the  bond  of  penitence  and  take  it 
as  a  medicine  to  his  soul.  Theodosius,  trembling,  urged 
in  excuse  the  guilt  of  David.  Ambrose  answered:  'If  you 
have  sinned  like  him,  be  like  him  also  in  your  repentance.' 

"  Theodosius  showed  the  nobility  of  his  mind  by  sub- 
mission, and  openly  mourned  for  the  space  of  eight 
months.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he  was  re-admitted  to 
Church  privileges,  after  a  promise  to  issue  no  more  such 
rash  sentences. 

"'This,'  says  Milman,  'was  the  culminating  point  of 
pure  Christian  influence;  Christianity  appeared  before 
the  world  as  the  champion  and  vindicator  of  outraged 
humanity.'  The  scene  is  a  striking  and  man-ellous  one : 
the  Christian  priest,  the  mighty  Emperor,  in  such  a 
strange  position  the  one  to  the  other ;  and  last,  the 
Emperor's  holy  submission  to  a  power  which  he  recog- 
nized as  Divine,  and  his  restoration  to  Church  privileges 
in  that  glorious  building  of  St.  Ambrose. 

"Theodosius  died  at  Milan,  395,  at  the  early  age  of 
fifty,  constantly  and  affectionately  nursed  by  Ambrose, 
who  survived  him  but  two  years,  and  died  in  peace  on 
Easter  Eve,  397. 

"  So  much  for  the  hie  of  this  great  man.    I  must  not 


PLAIN  SONG. 


269 


let  it  lead  me  farther  away  fiom  my  subject — Church 
music.  Two  centuries  later,  Gregory  the  Great  gathered 
up  the  remains  of  the  musical  work  which  Ambrose  had 
done,  and  added  tones  and  scales  of  his  own. 

"We  must  now,"  continued  Mrs.  Askell,  "turn  our 
attention  to  plain  which  is  the  basis  of  eccle- 

siastical music,  and  comprises  the  musical  portion  of 
the  service  as  appointed  from  extremely  ancient  if  not 
primitive  times,  including  the  intoning  of  the  prayers.* 
Indeed,  the  prayers  of  the  Temple  service  seem  to  have 
been  musically  rendered,  and,  therefore,  we  may  naturally 
suppose  that  this  method  passed  at  once  into  the  early 
Christian  Church." 

"  It  seems  more  natural  to  read  the  prayers  in  one's 
ordinary  voice,  1  think,"  said  Joan. 

"  More  natural  ?  But,  even  if  so,  does  that  at  once 
prove  it  to  be  more  desirable  ?" 

"  1  think  one's  heart  enters  more  into  the  prayers  when 
the  attention  is  not  drawn  off  by  the  trouble  of  intoning 
them." 

"  If  so,  that  would  be  an  important  argument ;  but  you 
will  find  it  applies  only  to  persons  unused  to  a  musical 
service.  This  soon  becomes  so  easy  that  there  is  no 
trouble  whatever  in  pitching  the  voice  as  required,  and 
the  heart  goes  as  freely  with  the  one  mode  as  the  other. 
Besides,  there  are  reasons  for  decidedly  preferring  the 
monotone." 

"  What  are  they,  please  ?" 

"  First,  its  claim  to  respect  on  account  of  antiquity  and 
universality  ;  secondly,  its  greater  decency,  for  there  is 
no  comparison  between  the  outburst  of  a  united  response 
and  the  confused  murmur  of  many  voices,  each  respond- 
To  intone  a  service  is  to  read  it  with  proper  musical  inflections,  not  on 


270 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


ing  at  its  own  special  pitch  ;  thirdly,  the  sinking  of  self  in 
a  whole." 

"  I  do  not  understand  this  last." 

"I  mean,  that  instead  of  hearing  one's  own  voice  in 
each  response  (a  system  which  generally  ends  in  leaving 
the  greater  part  of  the  responses  to  the  clerk),  one  has 
the  privilege  of  feeling  the  unity  of  Christian  worship. 
Responding  loudly  and  heartily,  you  can  yet  seldom 
distinguish  your  own  voice  in  a  good  musical  service. 
And  this  typifies  the  entire  feeling  cultivated  by  the 
Church  as  distinguished  from  that  cultivated  by  the 
Protestant  sects.  The  Church  would  have  us  merge  our 
own  petty  individuality  in  the  oneness  of  Christian  life,  and 
so  gives  a  breadth  and  sweetness  and  life  in  one  another. 
The  sects  would  have  each  seek  first  his  own  salvation, 
analyse  his  own  feelings,  profess  his  own  faith,  and  so 
they  encourage  narrowness,  and,  in  the  end,  a  want  of 
spiritual  life." 

"  I  must  think  of  these  things  when  I  feel  so  timid 
about  responding." 

"  Do  so  ;  make  the  effort,  and  I  prophecy  you  \vill  soon 
change  your  opinion.  Nor  must  1  omit  to  add,  in  the 
fourth  place,  that  the  intoning  voice  is  absolutely  (despite 
your  objection)  more  natural  than  the  ordinary  speaking 
voice,  as  you  would  know  by  experience  if  you,  like  a 
clergyman,  had  to  speak  in  an  elevated  lone  for  a  con- 
siderable length  of  time.  You  would  be  surprised  to  find 
how  much  farther  and  more  easily  the  monotone  will 
carry  the  voice."  * 

"  Did  the  Reformers  make  many  rules  about  Church 
music?" 

•  So  much  so  that  in  one  edition  of  the  Prayer  Book  a  rubric  orders  the 
lessons  to  be  read  in  cathedrals  or  large  churches  in  plain  song,  in  order  thai 
tlu- />io/li-  limy  the  better  hear. 


PLAIN  SONG. 


271 


"  No  ;  there  are  very  few  hints  in  our  Prayer  Book  or 
canons  on  this  subject,  and  no  absokite  directions  ;  but 
it  is  undoubted  that  the  ancient  musical  traditions  and 
customs  were  intended  to  be  continued. 

"A  worlc  by  the  musician  Marbeck,  put  forth  in  1550, 
shows  that,  as  in  ritual,  so  in  music,  the  Reformers  desired 
to  return  from  an  overladen  style  to  the  simplicity  of  early 
times. 

"  Plain  Song  had  been  the  music  of  the  Church  from  the 
beginning ;  it  was  restored  to  more  general  use  in  the 
Reformed  Church  of  England." 

"What  is  Plain  Song.?" 

"  It  is  defined  by  Mr.  Dyce,  in  his  Preface  to  the  Prayer 
Book,  as  edited  by  him,  to  be  '  not  an  indeterminate  kind 
of  melody,  but  a  mode  of  intonating,  chanting,  and  singing 
in  the  Church,  which  implies  an  adherence  to  certain  rules, 
and,  to  a  great  extent,  the  use  of  certain  well-known 
melodies  that  are  severally  appropriated  to  particular  parts 
of  the  service.'  An  injunction  of  the  reign  of  Elizabeth 
enjoins  'a  modest  and  distinct  song'  to  be  'so  used  in 
all  parts  of  the  common  prayers,  that  the  same  may  be  as 
plainly  understanded  as  if  it  were  read  without  singing.'" 

"  Did  the  Church  at  the  time  of  the  Reformation  use 
the  same  hymns  that  we  use  now.?"  asked  Joan. 

"  We  retain  but  few  of  the  ancient  hymns,  and  this  is 
much  to  be  regretted.  The  hymns  were  duly  appointed 
in  the  earlier  Church,  not  left  to  the  weekly  choice  of  the 
clergyman  or  organist." 

"  The  people  could  sing  more  heartily  if  they  knew 
exactly  what  was  coming." 

"  Certainly.  But  it  was  difficult  to  translate  the  Latin 
hymns  into  English  verse,  and,  against  Cranmer's  wish, 
a  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms  was  substituted.  Thus 
many  grand  hymns  were  utterly  lost  to  the  Reformed 


272 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


Church — hymns  which  fixed  in  the  mind  of  the  people 
the  great  events  of  the  Gospel  story  ;  the  music  to  which 
the  metrical  Psalms  and  modern  hymns  u-as  set  grew  more 
and  more  elaborate  and  weak  ;  and  the  art  of  singing, 
both  in  clergy  and  laity,  being  now  too  much  neglected, 
whereas  of  yore  it  was  regularly  cultivated,  congregational 
singing  has  come  down  to  an  extremely  low  level." 

"  What  do  you  think  the  best  mode  of  raising  it  ?" 

"  An  excellent  judge  *  has  stated  it  to  be  '  the  general 
introduction  of  a  full  choral  service  of  the  Plain  Song 
order.'  What  this  would  be  in  full  we  need  not  stop  to 
enquire,  but  of  course  you  understand  that  the  chants 
would  be  those  called  Gregorian,  not  the  modern  florid 
ones  known  as  Anglican." 

"  The  Anglican  chants  are  prettier,  I  think,"  said  Joan. 

"  They  are  certainly  more  attractive  to  an  unpractised 
eai",  but  they  are  inferior  to  Gregorian  in  several  respects. 
They  are  not  so  solemn  nor  so  simple ;  they  do  not  lend 
themselves  so  well  to  the  words  ;  for  in  using  Anglican 
chants,  the  words  of  the  Canticles  must  be  arranged  in  a 
stiff  and  unelastic  manner  according  to  the  strain  of 
music,  whereas  in  a  well  sung  Gregorian  the  nmsic  adapts 
itself  entirely  to  the  words,  and  is,  in  fact,  but  a  melodious 
rendering  of  them.  Thirdly,  Anglican  chants  being  more 
florid  and  having  a  distinct  air,  pall  (after  a  time)  upon 
the  ear,  as  food  with  a  decided  taste  palls  upon  the  palate  ; 
while  of  the  Gregorian  chants  in  their  simplicity,  like  our 
daily  bread,  we  never  tire." 

"  You  would  always  use  Gregorian  music,  then,  aunt,  if 
you  had  to  choose .''" 

"  Gregorian  chants;  but  metrical  hymns  are,  to  my  fancy, 
better  adapted  for  the  modem  and  more  varied  and  florid 

♦  The  Rev.  Thos.  Helmore.  See  p.  286  of  Dr.  Lee's  revised  edition  of  the 
Direciorium  A ngUrannvi. 


VF.XILLA  REGIS. 


273 


compositions  ;  though  here  many  excellent  judges  would 
differ  from  me  entirely,  and  advocate  such  tunes  as  we 
find  in  Helmore's  Hymnal  Noted" 

Mrs.  Askell  now  gave,  as  a  specimen  of  the  hymns  to 
which  she  referred,  the  fine  old  tune  "  Vexilla  Regis," 
"  The  Royal  Banners,"  played  without  division  of  bars. 
Joan  confessed  that  she  could  neither  understand  nor 
enjoy  it. 

"  On  the  subject  of  Church  music  of  varied  character, 
I  will  read  you  the  closing  passage  from  Dr.  Dykes's  paper 
op  that  topic  in  Blunt's  Annotated  Prayer-book.  And 
here  I  may  say,  that  though  I  have  so  slightly  and 
inadequately  noticed  the  wide  subject  of  Christian  music, 
because  it  is  too  difficult  and  too  technical  for  me  to  treat 
of  or  for  you  to  learn  without  vast  preparation,  yet  you 
will  find  all  that  (without  personal  experience)  you  can 
acquire  on  this  head  in  the  paper  from  which  I  take  my 
extract ; — 

"  'With  regard  to  the  exact  nature  of  the  music  to  be  employed  in  the 
Psalms,  Hymns,  Canticles,  Anthems,  &c.,  it  would  be  most  unwise,  even  if 
possible,  to  lay  down  any  strict  rules.  While  it  would  be  a  great  error  to 
discard  many  of  the  ancient  Hymn-tunes  and  Psalm-chants  of  the  Church, 
it  would  be  a  no  less  serious  error  to  keep  exclusively  to  them.  The  Church 
must  bring  forth  from  her  treasure  house  "  things  new  and  old  ;"  not  only 
the  severe  (and  to  some  ears  uncouth),  unisonous  strains  of  bygone  times, 
but  also  the  rich,  full  harmonies  of  modem  days.  All  must  be  freely, 
fearlessly  employed,  according  as  taste  or  special  circumstances,  or  choral 
capability  may  dictate.  Experiments  must  be  made,  mistakes  perhaps 
braved  ;  for  many  questions  as  to  the  best  practical  inclhotls  of  linking 
together  the  *' sphere-born  harmonious  sisters — Voice  and  Verse,"  in  the 
service  of  the  Sanctuary,  remain  as  yet  undecided.  Hasty  dogmatism,  and 
intolerant  exclusivencss,  in  reference  to  the  accessories  of  Divine  worship 
are  much  to  be  deprecated,  for  in  all  matters  of  external  apparatus  the 
ChiM-ch  of  England  has  yet  much  to  learn.  In  putting  forth  the  full  strength 
of  our  Prayer  Book,  and  developing  its  inward  powers  and  energies,  there 
will  be  also  gradually  disclosed  outward  features  and  graces  which  seem  new 
and  strange  from  their  having  been  so  long  latent.  But  it  is  certain  that  all 
the  resources  of  the  Church,  external  as  well  as  internal,  are  needed  for 
modem  limes ;  and  that  all  appliances,  musical,  ritual,  assthetic,  should 


274 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


be  brought  to  bear  on  the  services  rendered  to  God  by  so  cultivated  an  age, 
and  set  forth  before  men  to  win  and  help  their  souls  God  having  given  all 
these  outward  aids — music,  ritual,  art — He  means  them  to  be  employed  for 
His  glory,  and  in  order  to  influence  and  subdue,  and  attract  mankind.  As 
churches  should  be  beautiful,  and  ritual  beautiful,  so  music  also  should  be 
beautiful ;  that  it  may  be  a  more  fitting  offering  to  Him,  and  better  calculated 
to  impress,  soften,  humanize,  and  win.  None  of  these  Divinely-granted 
helps  in:iy  he  contemptuously  laid  aside.  All  should  be  reverently,  humbly, 
piously  used  ;  used  for  God,  not  for  self;  used  in  full  and  fearless  confidence 
that  it  is  His  own  blessed  will  that  they  should  be  used  ;  used  with  the 
single  eye  to  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  spiritual  welfare  of  His  people.' 

"  It  is  curious,"  observed  Mrs.  Askell, "  how  extremes  meet 
in  religious  services  and  religious  music.  We  Anglicans 
adhere  to  special  tunes  for  our  sacred  songs,  tunes  which 
are  only  associated  in  our  minds  with  sacred  words  ;  but 
Romanists  and  Protestant  sects  alike  have  adapted  for 
such  purposes  all  the  secular  tunes  which  seemed  to  them 
attractive,  and  so  in  the  Crown  Hymn-hook  of  the 
Romanists  in  England  we  have  popular  operatic  airs  set 
to  hymns,  and  among  our  Dissenters  the  same  is  the  case  ; 
you  may  know  a  very  favourite  hymn  arranged  to  the  air 
of  '  Drink  to  me  only  with  thine  eyes.'  Moreover,  whereas 
the  organ  seems  to  us  the  only  musical  instrument  suffi- 
ciently solemn  in  effect  for  use  in  churches,  the  Continental 
churches  admit  a  full  band,  and  Dr.  Gumming,  the  well- 
known  Presbyterian,  must  have  astonished  his  audiance 
by  advocating  the  same  course.  Some  have  also  begun 
to  introduce  a  variety  of  instruments  into  religious  services 
of  the  English  Church." 

"  How  I  look  forward  to  being  in  London  with  you, 
auntie,  to  sec  the  churches  !" 

"  So  do  I  look  forward  to  it,  and  also  to  the  enjoyment 
we  shall  have  in  Exeter  Hall  together." 

"What!  the  oratorios?" 

"  Yes." 

"  I  have  heard  two,  and  they  seem  to  me  perfect  dreams 
of  happiness." 


THE  ORATORIO. 


275 


"You  pity  the  people  who  lived  when  there  were  no 
oratorios." 

"  I  do,  indeed.    When  were  oratorios  first  composed  ?" 

"In  the  sixteenth  or  seventeenth  century,  at  Rome; 
the  name  and  the  thing  had  their  origin  in  the  Oratorio 
(praying-place  or  chapel,  from  orare,  to  pray)  of  St.  Fihpo 
(or  St.  Philip)  Neri  in  that  city.  After  the  service,  this 
good  man  would  give  a  sort  of  sacred  concert  to  allure 
the  young  ;  '  among  these  spiritual  songs  were  dialogues, 
and  these  entertainments  becoming  more  frequent  and 
improving  every  year,  were  the  occasion  that,  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  oratorios  were  invented,  so  called 
from  their  origin.'*  The  first  great  master  in  this  style 
was  Carissimi,  born  at  Padua,  15.S2.  His  masterpiece, 
the  oratorio  of  Jephtha,  has  been  produced  in  London 
by  Mr.  Hullah.  The  beauty  of  the  recitatives  is  very 
remarkable.  But  the  prince  of  oratorio  writers  is  Handel, 
born  at  Halle,  in  Saxony,  1685.  The  great  Sebastian  Bach 
was  born  in  the  same  year,  and  the  two  giants  worked  on 
their  melodious  way  in  two  different  paths,  but  each  alike 
devoting  his  genius  to  the  cause  of  Christianity.  Bach's 
'  Passion '  music  is  of  immense  value  and  beauty,  and  I 
have  seldom  been  more  disappointed  than  in  being  pre- 
vented from  attending  the  performance  of  his  '  Passion ' 
according  to  St.  Matthew,  in  the  solemn  shades  of 
Westminster  Abbey.  Yet  that  and  all  must  yield  place 
to  The  Messiah.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  Handel 
chose  the  words  of  that  oratorio  himself,  rejecting  all  aid 
of  those  practised  in  such  work.  He  knew  his  Bible  as 
well  as  any  man,  he  said.  Regarding  him  specially  as  the 
composer  of  The  Messiah,  it  is  also  touching  to  know 
that  he  prayed  to  die— and  did  die — on  Good  Friday. 
His  death  occuncd  in  1759. 

*  Hawkins's  Musical  History,  vol.  iii.  p.  441. 


276 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


"Yet  the  Elijah  of  Mendelssohn  speaks  as  loudly  to 
the  heart  as  The  Messiah  itself ;  indeed,  there  are  passages 
in  it  which  move  me  more  than  any  others  have  ever 
done.  But  time  would  fail  me  to  tell  of  great  modem 
composers  of  such  sacred  music  as  this.  It  is  a  subject 
utterly  inexhaustible  by  such  means  as  ours.  Nor  ought 
I,  perhaps,  to  have  passed  by  the  German  chorale,  a  unique 
form,  well  adapted,  by  its  great  solemnity,  for  religious 
subjects.  And  Luther  as  a  very  remarkable,  though  not  very 
filial  son  of  the  Church,  should  perhaps  have  been  named 
as  a  composer,  for  certainly  in  their  own  style  few  hymns 
surpass  'Ein  festc  Bitri;'  and  '  My  God,  what  do  I  see  and 
hear,'  both  by  him.  Yet  we  must  be  content,  for  in  a  short 
space  we  cannot  speak  of  everything  ;  and  indeed,  as  far 
as  concerns  the  oratorios,  they  can  scarcely  be  called 
purely  Church  music,  though  they  derive  their  name  from 
a  church,  and  we  may  now  perhaps  hope  to  hear  them 
oftener  in  our  cathedrals." 

"  I  fancy,  auntie,  tliat  the  cathedral  service,  though  so 
much  more  elaborate,  is  not  nearly  so  hearty  as  that  at 
St.  -Salvador's  ;  and  how  few  people  attend  it !" 

"  Certainly  ;  the  life  has  gone  out  of  our  cathedral 
services  to  some  e>;tent  for  the  present — only  for  the 
present,  I  hope  and  trust.  At  this  time  cathedral  prefer- 
ment is  looked  upon  too  often  as  a  comfortable  establish- 
ment rather  than  as  a  deep  responsibility  and  sphere  of 
earnest  work.  But  we  owe  to  our  cathedrals,  even  since 
the  Reformation,  a  debt  which  we  must  not  overlook  ;  that 
of  keeping  up  the  service  to  a  point  of  a  certain  beauty, 
in  a  time  of  general  laxness,  drj-ncss,  and  utter  want  of 
ornament.  If  the  parish  churches,  with  their  'three- 
decker'  pulpits  and  duct  between  the  pai-son  and  clerk, 
had  been  the  only  services  in  the  land  during  the  last 
gener.itions,  how  could  our  church  services  have  been  so 


277 


beautifully  restored  as  they  frequently  are  at  present? 
The  transition  would  have  been  almost  too  great  for 
human  energy  to  accomplish." 

"If  you  were  beginnin.:;  a  musical  service  in  any  place 
for  the  lirst  time,  wiial  should  you  do,  aunt?  Is  it  not 
very  difficult  to  find  those  lovely  boys'  voices  in  little 
country  places  ?  And  yet,  those  places  must  want  a  good 
service  as  much  as  any." 

"  I  should  not  trouble  much  about  the  boys'  voices, 
pleasant  as  they  are.  If  one  begins  a  choir  with  a  founda- 
tion of  little  careless  boys,  one  is  in  danger  of  losing 
more  in  reverence  than  one  gains  in  beauty.  I  should 
try  to  put  my  choir  on  a  higher  footing,  by  choosing  first 
as  the  basis  of  it  some  devout-minded  men,  communicants, 
with  a  fair  knowledge  of  music  or  a  willingness  to  learn, 
and,  of  course,  decent  voices.  Two  of  my  strictest  rules 
should  be  reverence  in  the  Church  services,  and  a  regular 
attendance  at  the  Holy  Comnuinion.  Having  done  this, 
I  would  admit  the  boys,  with  great  care  to  impress  upon 
their  minds  the  high  privilege  of  their  calling  and  the 
responsibility  of  their  example  to  their  young  com- 
panions."* 

"Then  how  about  a  good  organist?" 

"  I  should  seek  (supposing  my  choir  and  church  were 
poor  in  means)  a  young  performer,  not  necessarily  com- 
petent to  play  the  congregation  in  and  out  with  flourishing 
voluntaries,  but  with  a  heart  in  his  work,  an  experience  in 
a  good  musical  service,  and  ability  to  play  the  Gregorian 
chants  fluently  so  as  to  accompany  the  words  ;  no  very 
easy  accomplishment,  I  assure  you." 

"  Should  your  choir  chant  antiphonally  ?'•' 

"  Certainly,  and  the  congregation  should  also  be  trained 

*  See  the  Rev.  J.  W.  Romsey's  paper  on  Church  music  in  The  Church 


278 


CHURCH  MUSIC. 


to  it :  that  manner  is  far  more  restful  to  the  voices,  and 
keeps  up  the  lightness  of  the  chant." 

"  I  have  noticed,  that  in  the  cathedral  one  side  of  the 
choir  is  called  Decani  and  the  other  Cantoris.  What 
does  that  signify?" 

"  The  word  Decani  means  '  The  Dean's,'  i.e.  the  Dean's 
side  or  south  side ;  the  word  Cantoris  means  '  The 
Precentor's,'  or  north  side.  The  method  of  antiphonal 
singing  varies,  but  the  usual  custom  is  for  the  first  two 
verses  of  the  daily  Psalms  to  be  sung  by  the  whole  choir ; 
the  south  and  north  sides  taking  up  the  strain  alternately. 

"There,  then,  is  my  choir ;  but  oh  !  when  I  think  of  the 
labour  and  pains  so  often  taken  in  vain  to  acquire  a  little 
harmony  on  earth,  I  sigh  for  one  breath  of  sweetest  melody 
of  the  harps  of  heaven  : 

*'  *  Down  below,  a  sad  mysterious  music. 

Wailing  through  the  woods  and  on  the  shore. 
Burdened  with  a  grand  majestic  secret. 
That  keeps  sweeping  from  us  evermore. 

•*  *Up  above,  a  music  that  entwineth, 

With  eternal  threads  of  golden  sound. 
The  great  poem  of  this  strange  existence. 
All  whose  wondrous  meaning  hath  been  found.'"* 


*  From  a  poem  by  Bishop  Alexander  (of  Derry), 


APPENDIX. 


SlntiEnt  tjtbcttt)  lt?pmn. 

MIRIAM'S  SONG. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


**  Wlierever  in  tJi£  world  I  am. 

In  wliatsoe'er  estate^ 
I  have  a  fellmvship  with  hearts 

To  keep  and  cultivate. 
And  a  work  of  Itnvly  love  to  do 

For  tlie  Lord  on  Wlu>tn  I  wait, 

"So  I  ask  Thee  for  the  daily  strength 
To  none  that  ask  denied. 
And  a  mind  to  blend  with  outward  life 

While  keeping  at  Thy  side; 
Content  to  dwell  in  little  space 
So  Tlwu  be  glorified" 

A.  L.  Waring. 

QEVERAL  months  had  now  passed  away  since  Joan 
had  come  to  her  aunt.  From  time  to  time  it  had 
been  said  that  she  must  return  to  school  when  her  health 
grew  stronger;  but  of  late  this  remark  had  been  more 
seldom  made,  as  both  aunt  and  niece  grew  more  closely 
attached  to  each  other.  At  last,  Mrs.  Askell  wrote  to 
Joan's  parents  in  India,  stating  what  a  comfort  the  girl 
was  to  her,  and  asking  them  definitely  whether  a  board- 
ing-school was  the  only  mode  of  education  possible  for 
their  child.  They  left  the  matter  entirely  in  Mrs.  Askell's 
hands,  and  then,  consulting  with  Joan,  who  often  had  a 
nightmare  of  the  coming  separation  from  her  aunt,  that 
lady  decided  upon  keeping  Joan  with  her  and  allowing 
her  to  take  lessons  in  a  good  day-school  near  at  hand. 
This  decision  was  to  the  joy  of  both.    One  day,  the  day 


GIRLS'  SCHOOLS. 


281 


upon  which  it  had  been  finally  decided  and  masters  fixed 
upon,  Joan  sat  with  her  aunt  in  the  little  sunny,  grassy 
garden,  the  yellow  leaves  falling  softly  in  an  autumn 
breeze,  the  rooks  cawing,  the  Virginian  creeper  glowing 
crimson  on  the  more  faintly  tinted  brick-work  of  the  old 
house ;  the  spire  of  St.  Salvador's  rising  white  and  high 
behind  the  elms. 

"  I  sat  here  on  the  very  morning  when  you  began  our 
Church  lessons,"  said  Joan.  "  It  was  spring  then,  and  I 
was  so  weak  and  ill.  Now,  thanks  to  my  dear,  dear 
auntie's  care,  I  am  strong  and  well,  and  I  think  I  am 
changed  in  other  ways  too." 

"  I  think  you  are." 

"  What  you  have  taught  me  seems  quite  different  from 
the  knowledge  of  history  and  geography  I  should  have 
got  at  school." 

"  History  and  geography  are  very  needful  knowledge, 
Joan,  and  now  you  must  make  haste  to  learn  them." 

"  Yes,  but  they  do  not  go  down  into  one's  own  self  and 
change  one  ;  I  feel  a  different  being,  with  all  sorts  of 
different  aims  and  wishes,  since  I  have  known  something 
of  our  dear  Church." 

"I  hope  it  may  bear  fruit  and  go  on  to  perfection." 

"Oh  !  I  do  indeed  trust  so,  auntie.  Living  here  I  have 
every  chance.  I  could  hardly  have  borne,  I  think,  to  go 
back  to  a  school  where  there  was  no  talk  and  no  thought 
of  such  matters." 

"And  it  is  marvellous  how  few  girls'  schools  there  are 
of  which  the  governesses  seem  to  have  a  high  tone  about 
them  in  this  one  matter  of  Church  feeling,  which  after 
all  is  almost  the  only  thing  to  give  a  girl  the  fit  mind  of 
humility,  docility,  loving-kindness,  and  withal  refinement. 
Such  schools  are  far  too  little  known." 

"  Do  you  think  boarding-schools  good  for  girls  ?" 


282  CHURCH  WORK. 


"All  depends  on  the  school,  Joan.  For  me,  an  only 
child,  it  was  in  many  ways  excellent.  I  did  not  go  too 
young  ;  that  is,  not  before  my  mother's  teaching  had  had 
time  to  take  strong  root  in  me,  and  I  may  say  (for  all  the 
praise  is  hers)  that  1  was  able  to  do  some  good  to  those 
whose  training  had  been  less  careful.  It  rests  so  much 
with  the  elder  girls  of  a  school  to  give  the  right  tone  to 
it.  But  for  you,  uninstructed  as  you  were,  I  think  school 
was  very  harmful." 

"  Do  you  think  it  best  for  girls  to  have  governesses  at 
home  ?" 

"You  are  really  asking  me  a  very  difficult  question, 
which  would  need  a  tractate  On  tJie  Higher  Education  of 
Women  to  answer  it  properly.  I  refer  you  to  Miss  Emily 
Davies's  little  book  of  that  name,  or  to  Mrs.  Grey's  or 
Miss  Sewell's  works.  I  think  the  governess  system  may 
work  excellently  for  those  who  can  afford  to  pay,  and  have 
judgment  to  choose,  a  woman  of  high  mental  cahbre. 
Then,  nothing  can  be  better.  But  the  children  of  people 
thus  rich  and  wise  are  almost  sure  to  be  well  educated  in 
any  case.  For  ordinary  folk,  1  deplore  the  habit  of  placing 
children's  minds  wholly  in  the  power  of  some  one  person, 
probably  half-educated  both  mentally  and  morally." 

"  Then  what  is  best  ? " 

"  I  should  say,  attendance  at  classes  under  good  in- 
structors, some  private  lessons,  and,  above  all,  a  friend  to 
guide  and  advise  the  reading,  for  which  J  would  allow 
ample  time.  This  for  the  head  learning.  For  manners,  I 
would  allow  frequent  intercourse  with  the  best  society 
possible  in  the  case  ;  by  which  I  mean  simply  the  society 
of  the  most  refined,  simple,  thoughtful  persons  approach- 
able. And  for  the  heart  and  spirit,  I  would  let  a  girl, 
while  still  very  young,  have  some  work  to  do  for  her 
Master." 


DESIRE  FOR  WORK. 


283 


"  There,  auntie,  you  have  said  just  what  I  longed  for  ! 
Am  /  too  young  to  do  something  ?  " 
"  By  no  means  too  young." 

"Then,  may  I  have  some  work  to  do?  You  cannot 
think  how  often  I  have  longed  for  it  ;  but  I  dared  not  ask  ; 
I  am  so  ignorant." 

Her  cheeks  and  eyes  were  glowing  with  eagerness.  It 
was  evident  that  this  was  a  very  vital  question  with 
her. 

"If  you  wish  for  work,  I  dare  not  say  you  Nay,  Joan  ; 
but  we  must  not  be  in  a  hurry.  It  will  not  do  to  set  to 
work  in  order  to  indulge  our  own  wishes.  Even  the  desire 
for  work  is  often  hardly  better  than  restlessness." 

"Ought  one  not  to  wish  for  it.'"  said  Joan,  her  face 
falling. 

"My  dear,  one  ought  indeed  to  wish  to  work  for  God. 
But  we  must  wish  to  do  it  in  His  way,  not  our  own.  Dr. 
Hessey's  Hints  for  District  Visitors  has  a  Litany  with 
this  clause : 

**  *  From  choosing  my  own  course,  and  seeking  my  own  will. 
Good  Lord,  deliver  me  I '  " 

"  Then  how  are  we  to  find  our  work  }  " 
"  It  will  find  us,  Joan,  depend  upon  it." 
"  Will  it  ?    Surely  one  may  wait  very  long  and  see  no 
opening." 

"  I  hardly  think  so.  One  may,  of  course,  tell  those  who 
have  the  stress  of  work  upon  them,  as  our  clergymen, 
that  we  are  willing  to  work  ;  and  one  may  be,  and  ought 
to  be,  on  the  look-out  for  opportunities  of  doing  good. 
But  to  make  work  simply  because  one  wants  to  be  doing 
something,  and  is  discontented  with  sitting  at  homo, 
seldom  leads  to  much." 

"  Now  tell  me,  please,  dear  aunt,  a  little  about  what  a 
girl  can  or  ought  to  do.    Tlierc  uiUbL  be  so  many  girls, 


284 


CHURCH  WORK. 


sitting  at  home  idle  after  leaving  school,  with  really  nothing 
to  do  but  to  amuse  themselves,  keep  up  their  music,  and 
be  agreeable.  How  can  they  set  about  doing  work,  and 
what  can  they  do  ?  " 

"The  fact  is,  Joan,  there  are  not  very  many  things 
which  very  young  girls  can  do,  and  many  have  only  that 
work  which  is  hardest  of  all  for  earnest,  ardent  young 
souls  :  the  work  of  waiting  patiently  for  the  opportunities 
brought  by  time  and  experience.  It  is  only  those  who 
have  strength  to  wait  who  also  have  strength  to  work. 
Suppose,  for  instance,  a  girl  were  to  say  to  me  (as  some 
have  said) :  '  I  detest  my  uselessness ;  I  long  to  do  good ; 
but  my  parents  will  not  allow  me  to  teach  in  a  Sunday 
School,  or  to  visit  the  poor.  What  am  I  to  do  ?'  Suppose 
I  were  to  say  (as  I  have  said)  :  '  Wait  patiently  ;  mean- 
while, take  up  the  study  of  Church  Principles,  which  help 
one  to  work  well,  and,  pencil  and  note-book  in  hand,  read 
these  dry,  but  useful  books,  of  which  I  give  you  a  list.' 
And  suppose  the  girl  should  say,  by  word  or  deed,  that 
that  work  was  far  too  slow  and  tiresome  for  lier,  I  should 
feel  that  she  was  one  whom  I  should  be  loth  to  entrust 
with  active  work." 

"  But  if  parents  do  not  object,  what  can  a  girl  do.^"' 
"She  can  teach.  But  here  again  patience  is  needed, 
for  many  girls,  with  the  conceit  of  youth,  think  that  they 
are  competent  to  teach  in  the  elder  classes  of  a  Sunday 
School,  and  that  it  would  be  the  more  'interesting  work;' 
and  so  they  often  throw  up  the  junior  classes  entrusted  to 
them,  to  which  patience  and  good-nature  would  have 
made  them  perfectly  useful.  If  a  girl  undertakes  a  class, 
Sunday  or  week-day,  I  would  have  her  prefer  a  junior  one, 
if  the  choice  is  left  to  her  ;  lay  out  her  plan  clearly  for 
each  Sunday  (the  best,  perhaps,  is  to  go  through  the 
Gospel  history  in  short  stories,  told,  not  read ;  and  then 


DTSTRTCT  VISITING. 


to  question  out  of  the  pupils  the  matter  which  she  has 
talked  into  them).  She  will  find  work  enough  in  keeping 
order,  and  let  her  be  sure  that  want  of  order  is  her  fault, 
not  the  children's. 

"  For  district  visiting,  young  girls  are  not  suited.  Poor 
people  do  not  like  the  intrusion  of  girls  into  their  houses, 
nor  can  girls  give  the  counsel  and  sympathy  needed  in  a 
district  visitor.  They  are  also  liable  to  imposition,  and 
seldom  have  power  to  see  when  they  should  not  give. 
Sometimes,  however,  there  is  a  system  of  regular  tract- 
distribution,  or  of  collection  from  house  to  house  for 
clothing-clubs,  &c.  For  this  they  may  be  very  useful, 
and  find  their  bright  faces  welcomed  on  the  regular  day. 
Some  district  visitors  have  found  it  well  to  supplement 
Sunday  School  teaching,  often  insufficient  or  imperfect, 
by  a  catechizing  on  Gospel  and  Church  history  in  their 
own  districts  on  Saturday  afternoons  or  summer  evenings, 
when  the  children  are  at  home.  Rewards  of  sweets  or 
pictures  make  these  visitations  very  popular,  and  they 
have  really  immense  effect.  For  such  work,  if  the  regular 
visitor  is  too  busy  to  undertake  it,  girls  might  be  of  great 
use. 

"  A  good  reader  is  always  welcome  at  a  Mothers' 
Meeting,  and  otlicr  modes  of  usefulness  are  sure  to 
presenl  thcmselvrs.  ISut  the  kind  of  work  is  far  less 
imporlanl  than  tlie  spirit  in  which  the  work  is  done. 
This  is  all-important.  You  see  what  I  would  absolutely 
rcc|uire  of  a  girl  wlio  aspires  to  be  in  any  sense  a  true 
worker.  1  would  have  her  cultivate  the  spirit  of  modesty, 
i.e.  of  feeling  she  can  do  but  very  little  ;  secondly,  the 
spirit  of  docility,  to  go  for  help  to  those  who  have  liad 
more  experience  than  she  ;  and  thirdly,  the  spirit  of 
constant  prayer,  never  to  do  any  work,  however  small, 
without  that  safeguard." 


286 


CHURCH  WORK. 


"Aunt,  do  you  ever  find  the  spirit  of  prayer  flagging 
and  failing?" 

"Yes,  indeed,  often." 

"  So  do  I.    And  how  did  you  overcome  it  ?" 

"  I  doubt  if  any  one  of  ordinary  life  ever  does  over- 
come it  thoroughly.  But  there  are  helps.  Books 
such  as  the  Devotional  Helps  published  by  Masters, 
prayer  for  help  in  our  prayers,  and  societies  for  united 
prayer." 

"  I  think  this  last  must  be  a  very  beautiful  plan.  Have 
you  joined  any  society  V 

"  To  some  extent.  I  have  been  for  j  ears  an  associate 
of  the  Society  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  at  Clewer." 

"  Will  you  tell  me  about  it.?" 

"  I  will  do  more.  I  will  take  you,  when  we  go  to  town 
next  spring,  to  see  Clewer  itself,  one  of  the  most  peaceful 
and  holiest  little  spots  on  earth,  to  my  mind.  One  noble 
worker  has  there  established  charities  of  many  kinds  : 
schools,  a  hospital,  alms-houses,  a  refuge  for  the  penitent. 
The  associates  are  persons  living  in  the  world,  anxious  to 
share  at  least  by  sympathy  and  mutual  prayer  in  the  good 
there  done.  They  are  received  by  a  short  and  touching 
service  in  the  exquisite  chapel  of  the  House  of  Mercy, 
and  are  then  bound  to  do  some  work  as  an  associate.  If 
they  can  help  the  Community,  they  must.  If  not,  any 
work  for  God,  teaching  and  visiting  the  poor,  counts  as 
associate  work." 

"  How  can  they  aid  the  Society.-'" 

"  By  collecting  alms,  or  sending  patients  to  the  hospital, 
or  by  (which  is  a  privilege  to  themselves)  going  for  a 
few  weeks  at  a  time,  to  help  in  one  of  the  Institutions. 
I  should  like  you  to  feel  the  holy  calm  which  the  very 
place  seems  to  shed  upon  one." 

"  May  any  one  be  an  associate?" 


EMBROIDERY. 


287 


"Any  one  properly  desirous  of  becoming  so,  and,  of 
course,  with  full  Isave  of  parents."  * 

"  How  would  one  apply  if  one  did  not  know  the 
place  ?" 

"  By  writing  to  the  Rector  of  Clewer,  no  doubt.  I  was 
proposed  as  an  associate  by  a  friend  interested  in  the  place. 
Sometimes  Church  needlework  is  given  to  the  associates 
to  be  done." 

"What  is  that?" 

"  Such  work  as  embroidering  stoles,  alms  bags,  or  Altar 
cloths." 

"  That  must  be  immensely  difficult." 

"  The  higher  branches  need  practised  hands,  but  some 
may  be  easily  accomplished." 

"  It  must  be  very  interesting.  I  have  so  often  wished 
to  do  something  for  St.  Salvador's.  Do  give  me  some 
rules  about  Church  embroidery." 

"  I  will  do  my  best  in  a  few  words,  though  practice  is 
the  essential  thing.  We  will  begin  at  the  beginning,  and 
see  how  an  Altar  cloth  should  be  worked.  First,  get 
strong  linen  (glass-cloth  does  nicely),  have  it  scalded 
and  ironed,  draw  threads  all  round  the  piece  you  are 
going  to  use,  and  strain  it  quite  evenly  in  a  frame.  Then 
pin  your  design  on  the  back  of  the  linen  and  hold  it  to  the 
light  so  that  you  can  see  and  trace  it  with  a  quill  pen  or  a 
paint-brush.  Get  it  all  clearly  drawn  before  you  begin  to 
work  ;  never  think  you  can  make  a  bad  drawing  look  nice 
by  your  work. 

"  Let  us  take  a  floriated  cross  as  our  first  lesson.  The 
four  arms  of  the  cross  are  worked  (say)  in  white  floss,  in 

•  Simpler  societies  for  mutual  prayer  and  Christian  friendship  also  exist, 
as  for  instance,  that  of  St.  Anne,  to  whose  members  this  little  work  is  dedi- 
cated. These  societies  can  be  heard  of  by  a  query  for  insertion  in  the 
correspondence  of  any  Church  paper. 


CHURCH  WORK. 


embroidery  stitch,  i.e.  a.  stitch  done  much  as  drawings  are 
shaded,  great  care  being  taken  not  to  get  our  stitches  in 
lines  ;  each  stitch  must  dovetail  into  the  other.  Then  fill 
in  the  ground  with  blue  floss,  worked  also  in  embroidery 
stitch,  but  sewn  down  afterwards  with  the  same  floss  split, 
or  with  the  sort  of  silk  called  titcca  silk.  The  edge  is  done 
in  'brick'  stitch,  which  can  be  easily  worked  by  looking 
at  a  pattern.  Crochet  silk  is  first  laid  down,  left  rather 
loose,  while  the  decca  with  which  it  is  sewn  over  should 
be  worked  tightly.  The  decca  may  be  sewn  over  in  ar- 
ranged patterns  of  diamonds,  oblique  lines,  &c.  Basket 
stitch  is  done  by  laying  down  string  very  regularly  over 
the  linen,  then  laying  the  crochet  silk  over  the  string  at 
right  angles  with  it  and  so  as  to  cover  all  the  string  ;  then 
sew  down  the  crochet  silk  as  in  brick  stitch  with  decca. 
Very  pretty  colours  to  blend  are  gold  for  the  crochet  silk, 
and  orange  for  the  decca  ;  but  green,  red,  or  blue  may  be 
sulistituted  for  orange. 

"  When  our  design  is  worked,  we  will  take  white  tissue 
paper,  and,  with  a  smooth  flour  and  water  paste,  paste  it 
on  to  the  back,  and  when  the  paste  is  dry  and  the  paper 
firm,  cut  out  the  whole  design,  leaving  a  narrow  margin 
round  the  edge.  Then  fasten  strong  linen  or  brown 
holland  into  your  frame  ;  place  over  it  the  velvet  or  cloth 
on  which  your  design  is  to  be  mounted,  and  tack  it  down 
in  every  direction.  Then  put  your  design  upon  it,  and  lay 
filoselle  or  narrow  cord  of  gold  or  silk  against  the  edge, 
sewing  it  close  round  the  design  with  silk  or  four  threads 
of  filoselle,  leaving  the  cord  loose  and  drawing  the  sewing- 
silk  tight.  First,  however,  the  design  must  be  firmly  sewn 
down  upon  the  material,  so  as  to  raise  it  up  a  little.  This 
is  the  only  legitimate  way  of  giving  the  embroidery  a 
handsome  raised  appearance.  Some  people  stuff  their 
work,  but  this  is  an  abomination.   When  the  work  is  thus 


EMBROIDERY. 


289 


neatly  finished  off  with  cord,  take  it  from  the  frame  and 
cut  away  the  superfluous  holland  from  the  back. 

"  When  small  things,  such  as  markers  and  chalice-veils, 
are  to  be  made,  it  is  better  to  work  on  the  silk  in  the 
following  manner  :  Trace  the  pattern  on  thin  paper,  tack 
it  firmly  on  to  the  work,  and  with  fine  silk  or  cotton  trace 
the  pattern  on  the  silk ;  then  pick  away  the  paper,  and 
you  have  the  design  on  the  material. 

"  Crosses  for  stoles  should  be  worked  on  the  stole  itself. 
Suppose  we  take  a  cross  surmounted  by  a  crown ;  the  cross 
in  gold-colour,  brick  stitch  ;  the  crown  in  white,  embroidery 
stitch,  with  avery  narrow  piece  of  filoselle  round  the  crown. 
These  colours  would  be  in  good  taste  for  a  violet  stole. 

"  Some  people  cut  out  their  design  in  card  and  work 
over  it,  but  this  is  false  work,  and  as  the  card  is  apt  to 
break  and  stick  out  through  the  silk,  the  result  soon  be- 
comes unsatisfactory.  Never  grudge  your  silk  in  working  ; 
use  nearly  as  much  behind  as  before  ;  it  wears  well  and 
makes  the  work  stand  up  handsomely." 

"  But  this  is  very  costly  work.  Is  there  no  cheaper  kind 
for  places  where  these  things  cannot  be  had?" 

"  Yes  ;  there  is  a  cheap  and  effective  kind  which.answers 
well  for  hangings,  dossal  cloths,  or  even  Altar  cloths,  in 
poor  places." 

"  What  are  dossal  cloths  ?" 

"  Hangings  behind  an  Altar  where  there  is  no  reredos. 
The  word  comes  from  the  French  dos,  back." 
"  What  is  this  kind  of  work  ?  " 

"  It  is  a  sort  of  application.  You  cut  out  your  designs 
in  cloth  and  sew  them  on  to  your  material.  The  way  to 
set  about  it  is,  pin  out  your  cloth  tightly  on  a  board  with 
drawing-pins  or  tin  tacks  ;  then  paste  your  design  (drawn 
on  thin  paper)  on  the  cloth  and  let  it  dry.  Then  cut  it  out 
and  sew  it  (cloth  side  outwards,  of  course)  on  to  the  other 
u 


290 


CHURCH  WORK. 


material  with  silk.  With  taste,  one  may  arrange  this  style 
of  work  in  divers  very  effective  manners.  Part  of  the 
design  may  be  worked  and  part  applique. 

"  Here  are  some  dimensions  for  smaller  articles  which 
may  one  day  prove  useful  to  you  : 

"  Silk  Chalice  Veils  should  be  about  twenty-two  inches 
square,  with  a  border  of  silk  braid  and  a  handsome  cross 
worked  in  the  cenire  of  one  side  about  three  inches 
above  the  edge,  so  that  as  the  veil  hangs  over  the 
chalice,  the  cross  may  be  seen.  It  may  be  worked  either 
on  the  silk,  or  first  on  linen  and  then  applied,  but  for  such 
a  pattern,  better  on  the  silk. 

"A  Burse  is  twelve  inches  square,  with  a  cross  in  the 
middle. 

"  A  linen  Corporal  should  be  twenty-one  inches  square, 
and  have  five  crosses  worked  on  it  in  satinstitch  ;  one  in 
each  corner  and  one  in  the  same  position  as  in  the  chalice 
veil. 

"  A  Purificator  should  be  twelve  inches  square,  and 
have  one  cross  in  the  centre. 

"  A  Palla,  or  Pall,  of  linen  over  cardboard,  seven  inches 
square,  with  one  cross  on  one  side  only." 

"  I  do  not  quite  understand  the  use  of  these  different 
things." 

"  A  Chalice  Veil  is  a  square  of  silk  of  the  canonical 
colour  for  the  season,  used  to  cover  the  paten  and  chalice 
when  brought  in  by  the  priest  before  the  beginning  of  the 
Communion  Service. 

"A  Burse  is  a  square  stiff  pocket  of  silk  over  cardboard 
which  contains  the  corporal  and  the  fair  linen. 

"The  Corporal  is  a  square  of  linen  foMed  in  nine,  upon 
which  the  vessels  stand  at  the  time  of  consecration. 

"A  Purificator  is  a  small  sheet  of  linen  for  cleansing 
the  vessels  after  the  Communion  Service. 


ARRANGEMENT. 


291 


"The  Fair  Linen  is  peculiar  to  the  Anglican  rite.  It  is 
a  sheet  of  finest  cambric  or  lawn  richly  embroidered  and 
used  for  covering  the  bread  after  consecration. 

"  The  Pall  is  a  sheet  of  cardboard  covered  with  linen, 
covering  the  chalice  under  the  veil. 

"The  vessels  are  thus  arranged  :  The  priest  first  spreads 
a  clean  white  cloth  on  the  table  in  the  vestry,  upon  which 
is  placed  the  chalice.  Over  this  is  laid  the  purificator 
folded  in  three  ;  and  upon  this  the  paten  or  silver  plate 
for  the  bread,  which  exactly  fits  into  the  mouth  of  the 
chalice.  Upon  this  is  placed  first,  the  pall  ;  secondly,  the 
chalice  veil ;  thirdly,  tlie  burse.  The  whole  is  taken  in 
the  right  hand,  the  left  hand  placed  on  the  burse  to  keep 
it  in  position,  and  is  thus  carried  to  the  Altar,  where  it  is 
placed  a  little  to  the  riglit  of  the  centre.  The  corporal  is 
then  taken  out  of  the  burse,  and  spread  upon  the  Altar, 
and  upon  this  the  vessels,  still  covered  with  the  chalice 
veil,  are  placed.  The  fair  linen  is  also  taken  from  the 
burse,  laid  on  one  side,  and  the  burse  itself  placed  upright 
at  the  back  of  the  Altar.  They  remain  in  that  position 
until  the  bread  and  wine,  hitherto  on  the  credence  table, 
are  placed  upon  the  Altar  at  the  Offertory.  This  is  a  long 
account,  but  it  relates  to  things  not  always  known. 

"These  hints  which  I  have  given  you  are  but  slight, 
and  require  many  practical  additions.  I  shall  be  very 
glad  to  see  you  at  any  time  putting  them  in  practice.  It 
is  so  beautiful  to  do  a  little  work  to  help  to  clothe  our 
King's  Daughter  in  raiment  of  needlework.  Some  words 
of  Canon  Bright  express  well  the  spirit  in  which  the  work 
should  be  done : 

"  '  'Tis  for  Thee  wc  bid  the  rroiu.il 
Its  embroidered  wealth  unfold  ; 
'Tis  for  Thee  we  deck  the  rcrcdos 
With  the  colours  and  the  gold  ; 


292 


CHURCH  WORK. 


Thine  the  floral  glow  and  fragrance. 

Thine  the  vesture's  fair  array. 
Thine  the  starry  lights  that  glitter 

Where  Thou  dost  Thy  light  display.' 

"A  work  which  girls  may  learn  .to  perform  with  much 
skill,  and  by  which  they  may  render  themselves  very  useful 
in  the  service  of  the  Church,  is  illumination." 

"  I  have  tried  that,  but  I  failed  for  want  of  some 
rules." 

"  Rules  are  indeed  necessary,  and  good  rules  too,  for 
illumination  in  a  bad  style  is  abominable.  Here  are  some 
notes  given  me  by  a  friend  who  is  skilful  in  this  work. 
You  will  find  them  very  useful,  and  at  once  concise  and 
clear. 

"  The  following  notes  on  the  art  of  illuminating  comprise 
a  mere  outline  of  things  essential— a  few  scattered  hints 
to  the  beginner,  which  may  be  found  useful. 

"For  further  instruction  a  Ma?i!ial  of  Illuminaihig, 
by  Bradley,  with  appendix  by  Goodwin,  published  by 
Winsor  and  Newton,  is  recommended,  and  for  still  higher 
instruction  the  splendid  works  of  Digby  Wyatt  and  Noel 
Humphreys. 

"  Drawing. — This  most  important  part  of  the  work  is 
often  neglected,  and  it  is  thought  that  by  brilliant  colouring 
the  defects  of  outline  are  hidden  :  this  is  a  great  mistake. 
Let  the  outline  be  clearly  but  lightly  drawn,  and  in  the  case 
of  curves — so  frequent  in  illuminations — see  that  they  do 
not  start  out  from  the  stems  at  awkward  angles,  but  flow 
gracefully  and  naturally  therefrom. 

"  On  examining  any  specimens  of  old  missal  painting, 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  colours  are  more  or  less  subdued, 
producing  harmonious  effects  rather  than  gaudy  ones. 
This  can  only  be  accomplished  by  a  knowledge  of  the 
principles  of  the  harmony  of  colour. 


ILLUMINATION. 


293 


"Yellow,  red,  and  blue  are  termed  primary  colours 
because  they  cannot  be  produced  by  combination. 

"Secondary  colours  are  obtained  by  mixing  two 
primaries  ;  thus  :  orange,  red  and  yellow  ;  green,  blue 
and  yellow  ;  and  purple,  red  and  blue. 

"  Tertiary  colours,  by  mixing  two  secondaries  ;  citrine, 
orange  and  green  ;  olive,  green  and  purple  ;  and  russet, 
orange  and  purple. 

"  To  produce  harmony  in  colour,  the  presence  of  all  the 
primaries,  pure  or  in  combination,  is  necessary,  and  in 
absolute  colour  in  the  proportion  of  three  of  yellow,  five 
of  red,  and  eight  of  blue.  Green  is  said  to  be  the  com- 
plementary of  red ;  thus,  also,  purple  is  the  complementary 
of  yellow,  and  orange  of  blue. 

"The  following  colours  are  required  ;  others,  of  which 
the  student  will,  perhaps,  have  some  knowledge,  may  also 
be  found  useful  :  cadmium  yellow,  gamboge,  carmine, 
scarlet,  vermilion,  smalt,  burnt  sienna,  emerald  green, 
oxide  of  chromium,  Vandyck  brown,  lampblack,  and 
Chinese  white — this  last  should  be  in  tube. 

"  Use  distilled  water,  or  soft  water  perfectly  clear. 

"  A  very  little  gum  water  in  some  cases,  and  a  little 
Chinese  white  in  most  cases,  should  be  added  to  the 
colour  as  it  is  mixed.  Bear  in  mind  that  the  colour  when 
dry  will  assume  a  darker  tone  than  when  in  the  liquid 
state.  In  using  Chinese  white  it  is  best  to  allow  a  certain 
quantity  mixed  with  water  to  stand  for  some  time  before 
it  is  required. 

"  Use  one  brifeh  or  more  for  each  colour  ;  this  saves 
washing  (economising  colour)  and  time. 

"Before  any  colour  is  applied,  it  is  essential  that  all 
the  metal  work  should  be  begun  and  finished,  specially  in 
the  case  of  burnished  surlaces,  otherwise  the  burnishing 
spoils  the  colour. 


294 


CHURCH  WORK. 


"  The  process  of  leaf  gilding  would  require  more  space 
than  we  have  at  our  disposal  for  these  stray  notes  ;  the 
following  hints  therefore  apply  to  the  use  of  shell  gold  : 

"  The  gold  is,  of  course,  used  in  the  same  manner  as 
ordinary  colour ;  to  produce  the  dull  gold  effect  of  the 
old  illuminators  a  very  little  yellow  ochre  may  be  worked 
up  with  it ;  if  a  burnished  surface  be  required,  however, 
this  must  be  omitted. 

"  Having  covered  the  parts  intended  with  the  gold,  allow 
it  to  dry  thoroughly,  then  with  a  flat  burnisher  rub  the 
entire  surface  firmly  and  evenly  until  the  required  bright- 
ness be  obtained  ;  this  may  be  facilitated  by  previously 
covering  the  parts  to  be  gilt  with  a  mixture  of  Chinese 
white  and  gamboge,  and  rubbing  this  down  also,  when 
perfectly  dry,  with  the  burnisher. 

"  Figures,  lines,  and  dots  can  be  marked  upon  the  gold 
with  a  pointed  burnisher,  and  add  greatly  to  the  brightness 
of  the  effect. 

"  In  order  to  give  greater  effect  to  colours,  a  fine 
boundary  of  black,  with  an  interior  line  of  white,  should 
be  used  around  large  plain  spaces  of  colour. 

"  Care  should  be  taken  to  mix  sufficient  of  any  colour 
required,  so  that  the  whole  work  may  be  done  at  once,  else, 
if  a  second  mixing  be  required,  the  exact  tint  will  most 
likely  not  be  obtained,  and  the  work  will  dry  with  a  patchy 
appearance. 

"The  best  place  to  obtain  outlined  texts,  &c.,  is  Shap- 
cote's,  Rathbone  Place.  All  the  best  designs  are  printed 
and  published  at  the  Albert  Press  for  the  Emplo>-ment  of 
Women. 

"  For  the  sake  of  an  example  we  will  take  for  the  work 
a  slip  of  cardboard  (known  as  Bristol  or  London  board 
according  to  its  thickness  and  quality)  say  twenty  inches 
by  eight,  this  being  a  very  usual  size  for  small  texts, 


ILLUMINATION. 


295 


Having  fastened  this  down  to  an  ordinary  drawing-board 
with  drawing-pins — taking  pains  that  the  card  is  exactly 
square  to  the  edges  of  the  board — rule  spaces  for  the 
words  of  the  text  lightly  in  pencil  with  the  aid  of  your 
T-square  in  two  lines,  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
card  and  leaving  a  margin  at  top  and  bottom  of  (say) 
two  inches ;  this,  supposing  your  letters  to  be  three-fourths 
of  an  inch  high,  will  leave  a  space  between  the  two  lines 
of  the  text  of  two  and  a  half  inches.  These  measure- 
ments are,  of  course,  only  according  to  taste ;  you  may 
increase  the  margins  and  so  decrease  the  space  between 
as  you  will. 

"Being  an  ambitious  pupil,  you  will,  of  course,  wish 
for  something  noble  as  your  capital  letter;  this  may  be 
attained  by  the  letter  being  made  to  fill  the  whole  depth 
from  the  top  of  the  upper  text  line  to  the  bottom  of  the 
lower,  with  proportionate  breadth,  or  you  may  place  the 
initial— in  this  case  of  a  smaller  size — upon  a  square  or 
some  other  shaped  shield,  occupying  a  space  of  some  four 
square  inches  above  and  below  the  upper  text  line.  This 
shield  (as  it  is  called),  upon  which  the  capital  letter  is 
placed,  may  have  the  edges  at  the  top  and  left  side  ex- 
tended ornamentally,  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  frame  or 
border  to  this  part  of  the  text. 

"  Having  drawn  the  capital  letter  according  to  one  or 
other  of  the  plans  mentioned  above,  you  will  now  be  able 
to  take  the  whole  of  the  remaining  space  for  the  words 
of  the  text.  First,  portion  out  very  lightly  and  roughly  in 
pencil  the  spaces  which  the  several  words  will  occupy ;  if 
this  is  not  done  with  some  degree  of  care,  you  will  find 
when  your  words  are  complete  that  the  distances  between 
the  words  are  anything  but  equal.  As  an  assistance  to 
keeping  the  letter  perfectly  upright,  draw  with  the  square 
some  guide  lines  very  lightly  in  pencil;  with  the  aid  of 


296 


CHURCH  WORK. 


these  you  will  be  able  to  see  as  your  work  progresses  that 
it  is  not  sloping  either  to  the  right  or  left. 

"The  outline  being  drawn  first  in  pencil  should  be 
carefully  gone  over  in  ink,  and  here  again  the  T-square 
will  be  found  a  valuable  help  to  getting  a  firm  and  upright 
outline  for  the  perpendiculars  of  all  the  letters. 

"  And  now  you  may  proceed  to  colour  the  work  which 
has  been  thus  begun— according  to  the  rules  on  the  har- 
mony of  colour  which  I  have  already  given  you." 

"And  then  girls  can  help  to  decorate  churches  for 
festivals,"  said  Joan. 

"Certainly,  and  that  is  a  business  in  which  their  leisure 
hours  and  nimble  fingers  are  often  available.  But  tha 
arranging  seldom  falls  to  the  women's  share  ;  that  ought 
to  be  the  clergyman's  part,  and  so  it  is  less  needful  to  say 
anything  about  it.  It  is  especially  difficult  to  lay  down 
rules  for  decorations  of  a  temporary  nature,  as  they  vary 
with  the  feelings  and  tastes  of  the  clergyman,  and  with 
the  position  of  the  parish. 

"  In  the  country,  fresh  flowers  can  easily  be  had,  and 
then  it  is  needful  to  select  if  possible  flowers  in  which 
the  colour  of  the  Church  season  preponderates  ;  lilies  for 
the  feasts  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  &c.  Taste  in  arrange- 
ment (which,  I  think,  is  an  innate  talent)  will  make  the 
simplest  materials  effective.  The  most  striking  decora- 
tion which  I  have  seen  in  a  small  church  had  for  a  main 
feature  towering  spikes  of  white  pampas  grass  and  scar- 
let gladiolus  at  the  base  of  the  reading-desk,  and  of  the 
little  pulpit." 

"  Flowers  are  often  placed  in  pots  around  the  Altar,  are 
they  not  ? " 

"  Yes,  and  then  they  require  careful  watering  early  in 
the  day  ;  that  is  an  office  which  may  be  entrusted  to  a 
young  woman." 


DECORA  TIONS. 


297 


"The  Christmas  decorations  are  the  most  difficult  to 
manage,  because  then  one  can  get  no  flowers." 

"Yes,  but  the  evergeens  and  holly  are  very  effective, 
especially  if  the  bands  of  green  are  made  light  enough, 
and  follow  the  lines  of  the  architecture,  as  mouldings  of 
arches,  &c.  Falling  sprays  of  ivy  loosely  arranged  are 
more  effective  than  heavy  wreaths.  I  have  seen  a  beautiful 
Altar  cross  made  of  leaves  of  the  white  variety  of  holly  ; 
it  had  almost  the  effect  of  carved  ivory." 

"  Then  there  are  the  texts." 

"  Yes,  and  all  decorators  have  their  own  opinion  of  the 
best  material  for  this  purpose.  For  large  texts  to  cover 
long  spaces,  red  unstamped  flock  paper,  with  letters  of 
white  cartridge  paper  upon  it,  forms  the  clearest  and 
cheapest.  For  more  elaborate  texts,  as  over  the  Altar, 
letters  may  be  made  of  cotton  wool,  of  the  fluffy  calico 
called  eiderdown,  or  of  rice  fastened  on  with  gum.  In 
this  latter  case,  dust  made  of  large  white  glass  beads 
pounded  and  thrown  upon  the  rice,  has  a  very  pretty 
frost-like  effect.  Straw  tissue  also  makes  pretty  letters. 
For  wreaths  on  places  where  fine  work  is  required,  as  on 
the  front  of  a  pulpit,  nothing  is  prettier  at  Christmas-time 
than  a  device  of  moss  sprinkled  with  snowdrops.  Artificial 
ones  are  in  this  case  as  far  allowable  as  made  flowers 
ever  can  be  in  a  church ;  but  if  real  snowdrops  can  be  had, 
they  would  be  best  preserved  by  fastening  a  little  moist 
cotton  wool  round  their  stalks.  All  flowers  inserted  in 
moss  are  kept  fresh  in  this  manner.  A  veiy  pretty  Easter 
text  may  be  made  by  letters  of  white  cotton  wool  on  a 
foundation  of  moss,  with  a  border  of  little  bunches  of 
primroses  at  regular  intervals. 

"These  are  merely  a  few  hints ;  but  girls  work  so  entirely 
under  direction  in  church  decorations,  that  it  is  really  from 
exoerience  one  learns  best.    The  one  essential,  to  my 


298 


CHURCH  WORK. 


mind  is,  that  the  young  workers  should  go  to  their  task 
with  reverence,  should  never  enter  or  quit  the  church 
without  a  short  prayer,  and  should  restrain  their  voices 
while  in  that  holy  place.  Such  work  is  best  done  in  the 
school,  vestry,  or  baptistery,  as  far  as  may  be  ;  yet  much 
must  be  done  in  the  church  itself,  and  there  (as  I  said)  it 
is  very  important  that  the  voices  should  be  hushed  and 
words  limited.  I  have  heard  such  silly  chatter  and 
irreverent  laughter  in  God's  house  before  the  festival  of 
Christmas,  that  I  have  thought,  under  such  auspices,  the 
decorations  might  be  omitted  altogether  with  advantage." 

"  Dear  aunt,"  said  Joan  presently,  "  may  I  have  leave 
to  practise  what  you  have  told  me  about  work  for  God  ? 
May  I  have  anything  to  do  ?  " 

"  I  feel  no  doubt  you  may.  I  will  speak  to  the  Rector 
of  St.  Salvador's,  and  ask  if  he  has  a  Sunday-class  vacant, 
or  if  there  are  some  few  elderly  women,  or  sickly  young 
ones,  whom  you  might  cheer  and  help.  I  should  like  my 
Joan  to  feel  herself  a  lively  sione  in  the  great  temple. 

"  Why,  Joan,  do  you  know,"  added  Mrs.  Askell,  after  a 
pause,  "  I  have  omitted  a  girl's  best  work — the  work  which 
only  a  girl  can  do — and  that  is  a  certain  sort  of  influence 
among  those  of  her  own  age.  We  elders  may  teach  and 
preach,  but  it  is  the  young  who  set  the  example  ;  and  I  do 
believe  that  one  refined,  noble,  high-minded  girl,  sympa- 
thetic and  sweet,  and  utterly  devoid  of  clique  pride  and 
such  nonsense,  may  do  more  among  her  fellows  than  a 
host  of  elders  can.  I  have  often  thought  that  this  is  the 
special  mission  of  young  women.  They  catch  a  tone  so 
quickly  from  one  another.  A  simple  style  of  dress,  ab- 
horrence of  falseness  (as  false  jeweller}',  false  hair,  paltry 
finery)  ;  a  simple  and  outspoken  reverence  for  what  is 
holy  ;  courage  to  oppose  that  which  is  frivolous,  unkind, 
or  profane  in  conversation,  even  at  the  risk  of  seeming 


SOCIETY. 


299 


disagreeable ;  and  unselfishness  sufficient  to  mix  at  times 
with  those  below  her  in  position,  of  course  without  the 
impertinence  of  condescension ;  all  these  would  be  mighty 
means  for  good  in  the  hands  of  a  girl  who  should  seek  to 
serve  God  a  little." 

"  I  do  not  understand  you  quite  about  mixing  with  those 
below  us.    Should  we  not  seek  refined  society  ?  " 

"  Certainly  ;  but  there  may  be  much  refinement  without 
much  education.  And  in  this  a  girl  must,  of  course,  be 
guided  entirely  by  her  parents.  It  is,  on  the  whole,  a 
course  of  some  risk  ;  but,  for  some  girls,  it  opens  a  path 
of  great  usefulness." 

"  What  should  one  do,  then  ?  " 

"Shall  I  put  it  practically?" 

"  Please  do  ! " 

"We  will  say,  then.  Miss  Pyne  " 

"That  stupid  little  Miss  Pyne,  the  farmer's  daughter, 
who  calls  you  '  Mrs.  Askell '  in  every  sentence  ?" 

"  The  very  one.  I  would  suggest  (to  be  quite  practical, 
as  you  wish)  that  we  should  call  on  her  to-morrow  ;  ask 
her  to  tea  next  week  ;  lend  her  some  books,  and  try  to 
amuse  her.  1  will  not  insult  you  by  the  counsel  to  treat 
her  exactly  as  you  would  treat  your  most  admired  friends. 
1  know  you  will.    What  think  you  of  that  ?" 

Joan's  eyes  twinkled  with  a  little  laughter. 

"Is  that  the  practical  moral  of  all  our  Church  History, 
aunt  ?" 

"Yes  ;  it  is  partly  so.  We  are  all  one  in  Him  who  is 
the  Church's  Head  ;  we  are  all  living  stones  fitted  one  to 
another  in  His  temple  ;  we  are  all  children  of  one  Mother 
Church  ;  and,  young  and  old,  our  main  desire  and  effort 
should  be,  not  only  to  know  or  seem  to  know,  but  chiefly 
to  love  one  another  as  sisters  and  brethren  in  Him  who  is 
all  love." 


300 


CHURCH  WORK. 


"  Now,  dearest  Joan,"  continued  Mrs.  Askell,  "we  have 
come  to  the  end  of  our  round  of  lessons ;  the  substance 
of  them  is  such  as  deserves  much  closer  study,  and  we 
will  take  care  that  it  shall  be  studied.  Let  me  conclude 
our  course  by  reading  you  some  verses  by  Bishop  Coxe, 
which  embody  in  charming  language  much  of  what  I  have 
now  been  saying." 

She  opened  her  favouritevolume,  The  Christian  Ballads, 
and  read — 

"THE  CHURCH'S  DAUGHTER. 

"Oh,  woman  is  a  tender  tree  ! 

The  hand  must  gentle  be  that  rears. 
Through  storm  and  sunshine,  patiently, 
That  plant  of  grace,  of  smiles  and  tears. 
**  Let  her  that  waters  at  the  font 

Life's  earliest  blossoms,  have  the  care. 
And  where  the  garden's  Lord  is  wont 
To  walk  His  round — oh,  keep  her  there  1 
"  ^Vho  but  her  Mother  Church  knows  well 
The  deep-hid  springs  of  grief  and  joy 
That  in  the  heart  of  w^oman  swell. 
And  make  that  heart  or  else  destroy? 
*'  Who  but  the  Church  can  every  power 
Of  the  true  woman  nurse  to  life, 
Till  fit  for  every  changeful  hour. 
Is  seen  the  maiden— woman— wife  ? 
'"Tis  not  alone  the  radiant  face 

And  some  accomplished  gifts  that  shine. 
The  harmony  of  every  grace 
Is  nurtured  by  her  care  divine. 
"  She,  not  the  coy  and  bashful  art, 
But  all  the  instinct  of  the  pure, 
The  virgin  soul — the  angel  heart, 
Alone  is  mindful  to  mature. 
"E'en  like  the  first  warm  sun  of  May, 
Or  to  the  daisy  April  showers, 
*         Her  earliest  lesson — how  to  pray, 

Clothes  the  young  soul  with  fragrant  flowers. 


THE  CHURCWS  DAUGHTER. 


"So  points  the  Church  to  Paradise, 
And  bids,  in  peace,  her  child  depart, 
Then  shuts  to  earth  the  blessed  eyes, 
And  binds  with  balm  each  bleeding  heart. 

"Then  roses  pale  and  rose-marine. 
She  scatters  o'er  the  marble  dust ; 
And  at  the  last  heart-rending  scene. 
As  earth  takes  back  its  precious  trust, 

"  From  the  deep  grave  she  lifts  the  eye, 
Where  the  free  spirit  wings  hath  found. 
And  leaves  her  child's  mortality 
To  rise  an  angel  from  the  ground." 


BOOKS  TO  READ* 


Historical. 

A  True  Portrait  of  the  Priviitive  Church,  by  the  Rev.  E.  D. 

Cree.    (Murray,  is.) 
A  Key  to  Church  History  {Ancient),  edited  by  the  Rev.  J.  H. 

Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  2s.  6tt.) 
A  Key  to  Church  History  (Modern),  edited  by  the  Rev.  J.  H. 

Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  2j.  e^/.) 
The  Pupils  of  St.  John  the  Divine,  by  Miss  Yonge.  (Mac- 

millan,  4J.  M.) 

The  History  of  the  Christian  Church  during  the  First  Three 
Centuries,  by  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Blunt.    (Murray,  6^.) 

Theophilus  Anglicanus,  by  Bishop  Wordsworth.  (Riving- 
tons, 2.S.  6d.) 

The  History  of  Early  Chtistianity,  by  Dean  MiLMAN.  3  vols. 
(Murray,  i8j.) 

The  History  of  the  Christian  Church,  by  Dr.  BuRTON.  (Long- 
mans, y.  6d.) 

The  Lives  of  Certain  Fathers  of  the  Church,  edited  by  the  Rev. 
W.  J.  E.  Bennett.    3  vols.    (Hayes,  15^.) 

History  of  the  Church  lender  the  Roman  Empire,  A.D.  30-476, 
by  the  Rev.  A.  D.  Crake.    (Rivingtons,  7^.  f>d.) 

Some  Account  of  the  Church  in  the  Apostolic  Age,  by  D.  Shirley. 
(Macmillan,  y.  6d.) 

A  History  of  tJie  Christian  Church  (Middle  Age  and  Reforma- 
tion periods),  by  Archdeacon  Hardwick.  (Macmillan, 
each  loj.  bd.) 

Christian  Heroism,  by  Dr.  Neale.    (Masters,  zs.  6d.) 

Sacred  and  Legendary  Art,  by  Mrs.  Jameson.  (Longmans, 
2  vols,  3 1  J.  6d.) 

•  The  list  is  necessarily  imperfect  in  a  literary  point  of  view  ;  but  if  a  girl 
read  the  books  here  named,  she  will  discover  others  lor  herself. 

Information  concerning  the  price  of  the  books  is  added  where  it  seems 
possible  tliat  a  girl  may  obtain  the  volume  for  heisell 


BOOKS  TO  READ. 


303 


The  Life  of  Francis  of  Assisi,  by  Mrs.  Oliphant.  (Macmillan, 
4J.  6d.) 

A  Mirror  for  Monks,  by  BloSIUS.    (Stewart,  y.) 
Monks  of  the  West,  by  the  Comte  de  Montalembert.    5  vols. 
(Blackwood.) 

Apostles  of  Mediieval  Europe,  by  the  Rev.    F.  Maclear. 

(Macmillan,  4^.  i>d.) 
Anglo-Caiholicism,  by  the  Rev.  W.  Gresley.  (Masters,  4^.  6d.) 
The  Siege  of  Lichfield,  by  the  Rev.  W.  Gresley.  (Masters, 

I  J.  ?,d.) 

The  History  of  the  Ens^lish  Church,  by  M.  C.  S.  (Parkers, 
7^.  kd.) 

The  History  of  the  Early  English  Church,  by  the  Rev.  Ed. 

Churton.    (Lumley,  4j. ) 
The  History  of  the  Archbishops  of  Canterbury,  by  Dr.  HoOK. 

10  vols.  (Bentley.) 
Ballads  from  English  History,  edited  by  Bishop  WoRDSWORTH. 

(National  Society,  2j.) 
Household  Theology,  by  the  Rev.  J.  H.  BlUNT.  (Rivingtons, 

3..  bd.) 

T/te  Life  of  St.  Anselm,  by  the  Rev.  R.  W.  Church.  (Mac- 
millan, 4J.  6d. ) 

Lessons  on  the  Kingdom,  for  the  Little  Ones  of  the  Church 
of  England,  by  the  Rev.  W.  H.  B.  Proby.  (Masters, 

i^.  ed.) 

A  Church  Dictionary,  by  Dr.  IIoOK.    (Murray,  ids.) 

On  the  Reformation. 
The  History  of  the  Reformation,  by  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Blunt. 
(Tegg,  3^.  bd.) 

The  Reformation  of  the  Church  of  England:  its  History,  Prin- 
ciples, and  Results,  A.D.  1514-1547,  by  the  Rev.  J.  H. 
Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  i6j.) 

On  the  Prayer  Book. 
The  Annotated  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  by  the  Rev.  J.  H. 
Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  36^. ;  also  a  Compendious  Edition, 
\Qs.  6d. 


304 


BOOKS  TO  READ. 


A  Key  to  the  Kncndedge  and  Use  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer, 
by  tlie  Rev.  J.  H.  Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  7.s.  6d.) 

The  Prayer-book  Interleaved,  by  the  Rev.  W.  M.  Campion  and 
the  Rev.  W.  J.  Beamont.    (Rivingtons,  6d.) 

Catechizings  on  tlie  Prayer-book,  by  the  Rev.  W.  Lea.  (Masters, 
\s.  6d.) 

History  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  by  the  Rev.  F.  PROCTER. 

(Macmillan,  los.  6d.) 
The  Pasts  and  Pestk'als  of  the  Church  of  England,  by  Dr. 

Nelson.    (S.  P.  C.  K.,  4J.) 
Companion  to  the  Church  Services.    (Masters,  Jf.) 
Historical  Facts  concerning  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  by  the 

Rev.  E.  J.  BOYCE.    (S.  P.  C.  K.,  6</.) 

On  THE  Holy  Bible. 
A  Key  to  the  Kno^oledge  and  Use  of  the  Holy  Bible,  by  the  Rev. 

J.  H.  Blunt.    (Rivingtons,  2s.  6d.) 
A  Plain  Account  of  the  English  Bible,  by  the  Rev.  J.  H.  BlUNT. 

(Rivingtons,  3^.  (>d.) 
Church  Doctrine,  Bilde  Truth,  by  the  Rev.  C.  Sadler.  (Bell 

and  Sons,  3^.  6d.) 
Undesigned  Coincidences  in  the  Writings  both  of  the  Old  and  Neiu 

Testaments,  by  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Blunt.    (Murray,  df.) 
A  Devotional  Commentary  on  tlie  Gospel  Narrative,  by  the  Rev. 

Isaac  Williams.    (Rivingtons,  8  vols.,  ^s.  each.) 
A  Key  to  the  Narrative  of  the  Four  Gospels,  by  the  Rev.  Canon 

NoRRlS.    (Rivingtons,  2s.  6d.) 
A  Key  to  the  Narrative  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  by  the  Rev. 

Canon  NoRRis.    (Rivingtons,  2s.  6d.) 
Lessons  on  Old  Testatnent  History,  by  the  Rev.  J.  WatsON. 

(Church  of  England  Sunday  School  Institute,  2s.) 

On  Church  Architecture. 
The  Concise  Glossary  of  Architecture,   by  J.    H.  Parker. 

(Parkers,  7^.  (id.) 
The  Principles  of  Gothic  Architecture,  by  M.  H.  Bloxam. 

(Paikers.) 


BOOKS  TO  READ. 


30s 


"Church  Arrangement,"  by  Wm.  White,  F.S.A.  (Wells 
Gardner,  \s.) 

On  Christian  Art. 
Sacred  and  Legendary  A>-t,  by  Mrs.  JAMESON.  (Longmans,  2  vols. ) 

On  Church  Music. 
The  Dictionary  of  the  Bible,  edited  by  the  Rev.  W.  Smith. 

Art.  "Music."    3  vols. 
Sacred  Minstrelsy,  by  Dr.  Marcoliouth.    (2s.  6d. ) 
Directorinm  Anglicanum,  edited  by  Dr.  Lee.    Art.  "  Church 

Music." 

The  Annotated  Book  of  Com7non  Prayer,  by  the  Rev.  J.  H. 

Blunt.  Art.  "The  Manner  of  Performing  Divine  Service."* 
Accompanying  Harmonics  to  the  Hymnal  Noted,  edited  by  the 

Rev.  T.  K.  Helmore.    "Preface."  (Novello.) 
The  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  edited  by  W.  Dyce.  "  Preface." 
The  History  of  Alodern  Music,  by  John  Hullah.  (Parkers.) 
The  Music  of  the  most  Ancient  Nations,  by  Carl  ENGEL.f 
The  Chorister's  Guide,  by  W.  A.  Barrett.  (Rivingtons,  2s.  6d.) 

Devotional  Works. 
Thonohts  on  Personal  Religion,  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  GouLBURN. 

(Rivingtons,  6j-.  ()d.  and  y.  6d.) 
Sickness,  its  Trials  and  Blessings.    (Rivingtons,  y.  6d.  to  If.) 
A  Pew  Devotional  Helps.    (Masters,  2  vols.,  y.  6d.  each.) 
The  Narrozv  IVay,  being  a  complete  Manual  of  Devotion  for 

the  Young.    (Hodges,  6d.) 

For  the  Poor. 
Help  and  Comfort  for  the  Sick  Poor.    (Rivingtons,  Is.) 
Readings  for  the  Aged,  by  Dr.  Neale.    (Masters,  4J.  dd.) 
Sermons  to  Children,  liy  Dr.  Neale.    (Hayes,  3^.  6;/.) 
Plain  Words,  by  the  Rev.  Walsham  How.   (Wells  Gardner, 

3  series,  each  2s.) 
Voices  of  Comfort.    (Rivingtons,  7^.  6</. ) 

*  This  is  a  most  comprehensive  and  excellent  treatise. 

t  The  writer  has  often  felt  that  there  is  a  need  of  some  simple,  clear, 
concise  work,  cheap  in  price,  if  possible  catechetical  in  form,  by  which  the 
history  of  Church  Music  may  be  taught  in  schools  and  families. 


INDEX. 


Abbey,  242. 
Affusion,  154. 

Africa,  Primitive  Church  in, 
27. 

Agnus  Dei,  185. 
Aidan,  St.,  53,  86,  95. 
Aisle,  216. 
Alb,  182. 

Alban,  St.,  43,  201. 
Alphege,  St.,  57,  200. 
Ambon,  31. 

Ambrose,  St.,  199,  265. 
Amice,  182. 
Angel,  34. 

Antiphonal  Singing,  35,  264. 

Apostles,  Table  of  their  La- 
bours, 22. 

Apostolic  Succession,  173. 

Archbishop,  169. 

Archbishops  of  Canterbury, 
Table  of,  51. 

Archdeacon,  170. 

Arius,  18,  120. 

Arsenius,  121. 

Aspergillum,  199. 

Athanasius,  120. 

Augustine  of  Hippo,  St.,  203, 
265. 

Augustine,  St.,  4S,  200. 
Aureole,  190. 

Banns,  165. 
Baptistery,  32. 
Bath,  48,  77. 

Bede,  The  Venerable,  54, 
200. 


Bells,  253. 
Benedict,  St.,  65. 
Biscop,  IJenedict,  54. 
Bishop,  169. 
Blandina,  17. 
Blosius,  73. 
Bran,  40. 
BreWary,  no. 
Bridget,  St.,  76. 
Burse,  290. 
Buttresses,  228,  229. 

Ca;nobites,  65. 

Calendar,  107,  195-21 1. 

Candlemas,  197. 

Canon,  170. 

Cantoris,  278. 

Catacombs,  Church  of,  27. 

Catechism,  157-162. 

Catliedral,  32,  242,  244. 

Chancel,  31. 

Chasuble,  183. 

Chimere,  183. 

Chorale,  276. 

Chrisom,  156. 

Christopher,  St.,  212. 

Church,  a  Spiritual  Temple,  6. 

Church,  Branches  of,  5. 

Church,  Definition  of,  3. 
'  Church  Militant,  4. 
I  Church  Triumphant,  4. 

Cinque  Cento,  252. 

Clara,  St.,  89. 
I  Cloveshoo,  Council  of,  67,  175. 
I  Collects,  127-131. 
I  Colours,  Canonical,  181. 


INDEX. 


307 


Columba,  St.,  47,  76. 
Columbanus,  St.,  66. 
Confirmation,  162. 
Constantine,  Emperor,  20, 1 20. 
Convent,  242. 
Convocation,  171. 
Cope,  183. 
Corporal,  290. 
Councils,  Table  of,  24. 
Creed,  Apostles',  10. 
Cross,  Invention  of  the,  200. 
Cross,  The,  189,  204. 
Crowland,  59,  70. 
Curate,  171. 

Dalmatic,  183. 
Deaconesses,  34,  75. 
Dean,  170. 

Decani,  278.  [223,  229. 

Decorated  Architecture,  219, 
Decoration  of  Churches,  296- 
298. 

Directory,  The,  178. 
Dissolution  of  Monasteries,  64, 
Dog  Tooth,  228.  [82. 
Dominic,  St.,  86. 
Dunstan,  St.,  56,  200. 

Early   English  Architecture, 

219,  223,  228. 
East,  Turning  to,  116. 
Easter,  Celebration  of,  51. 
Ecclesiastical  Titles,  169. 
Edward  the  Confessor,  58. 
Ember  days,  127. 
Embroidery,  287-290. 
Erasmus,  98. 
Erastians,  178. 
Eremites,  65. 
Essenes,  65. 
Ethelbert,  48-50. 
Eucharist,  142. 
Evangelists,  191. 
Fair  Linen,  291. 
Feast  of  Asses,  81. 


Francis  of  Assisi,  87-91. 
Friars,  84-93. 

Germanus,  St.,  66. 
Gildas,  Historian,  54. 
Girdle,  Symbolism  of,  182. 
Glastonbury,  43,  136.  [239. 
Glossary  of  Architecture,  230, 
Gregorian  Tones,  264,  272. 
Guthlac,  St.,  71. 

[177 

Hampton  Court  Conference, 
Helena,  St.,  20,  201. 
Heretics,  18. 
Hereward,  59,  70. 
Hermann's  Consultation,  1 26. 
Hermits,  65. 
Homilies,  175. 
Hours  Canonical,  68. 

lago,  St.,  203. 
Ignatius,  St.,  16. 
Illuminating,  292-296. 
lona,  47. 

James,  St.,  Tlie  Great,  195. 
James,  St.,  The  Less,  195. 
Jarrow,  54. 

Jerusalem,  Destruction  of,  12. 
Kyrie,  1 18. 

Labarum,  The,  21,  205. 
Lammas  Day,  203. 
Lancet  Windov^'s,  218. 
Lanfranc,  68. 
Lauds,  65,  118. 
Lichfield,  43. 
Lindisfarne,  53. 
Litanies,  124,  175. 
Liturgy,  102-104. 
Lollards,  97. 

Maniple,  183. 
Marbeck,  271. 


Matins,  65,  iii. 
Metropolitan,  169. 
Mildred,  St.,  77. 
Monastery,  242. 
Monasticism,  64-83. 
Monkwearmouth,  54. 
Mullions,  219. 

Naos,  31. 
Nave,  216. 
Narthex,  30. 

Nicaa,  Council  of,  51,  140. 
Nimbus,  190. 

N.  or  M.,  157.  [224,  227. 
Norman  Architecture,  217, 
Northumbria,  Conversion  of, 
Nuns,  75.  [52. 

CEcumenic.1l  Councils,  19. 
Oratorios,  275. 
Orders,  Holy,  168. 
Orders,  Monastic,  60. 
Ordination,  172. 
Organ,  260. 

Palls,  197,  290. 
Paraclete,  163. 
Parochial  System,  56,  96. 
Patrick,  St.,  46. 
Paulina,  75. 
Paulinus,  52. 
Pclagius,  46. 

Perpendicular  Architecture, 

220,  223,  229. 
Persecutions,  Table  of,  23. 
Plain  Song,  269. 
Pollanus,  136. 
Polycarp,  St.,  15. 
Pot-metal,  248. 
Potamioena,  17. 
Priest,  6  (note),  169. 
Prime,  68,  114. 
Priory,  243. 
Prymer,  175. 
Psalter,  175. 


Purificator,  290. 

Queen  Anne's  Bounty,  99. 

Rector,  171. 
Reform,  Monastic,  67. 
Refuge,  Right  of,  32,  70. 
Renaissance,  241,  252. 
Rubric,  125. 

Sancgreal,  40. 

Santa  Klaus,  210. 

Sarum  Missal,  104,  136,  175. 

Savoy  Conference,  1 79. 
Saxon  Architecture,  215,  226. 
Scotch  Prayer-book,  178. 
See,  A  Bishop's,  32. 
Soffites,  217. 
Stigand,  58. 

St.  Michael's  Mount,  243. 
Stole,  183. 

Suffragan,  Bishop,  170. 
Symbolism,  180-194. 

Tertiaries,  92. 
'  Theodore  of  Tarsus,  56,  96. 
Therapeutoe,  65. 
Timbrel,  260. 

Tonsure,  Eastern  and  Western, 

Tonus  Peregrinus,  264.  [50. 

Triangle,  189. 

Transoms,  229. 

Tyre,  Plan  of  Church  in,  29. 

Tyre,  Primitive  Church  in,  30. 

Veils,  165,  290. 
Versicles,  ill. 
Vesica,  The,  186. 
Vestments,  182. 
Vicar,  171. 
Virgins,  75. 
!  Vulgate,  The,  206. 

j  Wearmouth,  67. 
I  Wiclif,  97. 
J  Widows,  75. 


